Jakarta, Aug 10 (Antara) - The government has been successful in carrying out its kerosene-to-gas conversion programs launched for household consumers over the past few years.
Households now use liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in different cylinder sizes. For economically weak households, subsidized LPG in 3-kilogram cylinders is available, while other households have non-subsidized LPG 12-kilogram cylinders.
In addition, the government has since 2009 launched a relatively cheaper gas program in gas grid connections for households, but the number of consumers who obtained the connections was still very small. In the period between 2009 and 2016, only some 185,991 household consumers were connected to the gas grid program.
Therefore, the government is determined to expand the networks of its gas connections for household consumers this year. After all, consumers who obtain gas through the network connections can receive gas at a cheaper price.
"The people can save as much as Rp90 thousand per month, as they use the gas for household purposes. When people use the 3-kilogram subsidized LPG in cylinders, they will spend Rp130 thousand per month," Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan said in a written statement on Saturday (Aug 5).
Gas for household consumers is cheaper because it does not pass through various process as it is directly channeled from its sources in a constant manner. Thus, the price of gas in a grid system is lower than LPG in cylinders.
"It can be 50 percent cheaper," Sales Area Head of state-owned gas distributor firm PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN) for Lampung Province, Wendi Purwanto, told Antara News Agency, Lampung Bureau, on Thursday.
He cited the price of LPG in 3kilogram, which is now Rp6 thousand, as an example, while the price of gas using the network connection is only Rp3 thousand per kilogram.
Director General of Natural Gas and Oil, IGN Wiratmaja Puja, claimed that the use of natural gas for household consumers is far more efficient, practical, cleaner, and safer. Each household only needs to spend Rp30-40 thousand per month. It is much cheaper than using LPG, where each household consumer has to spend some Rp60 to 70 thousand per month.
Therefore, the government is now trying to expand the gas network connections to household consumers, setting a target to provide 59,809 gas connections to households this year.
Jonan has also planned to provide 19 thousand additional connections build by funds diverted from that for the construction of a fuel storage tank. The funds, amounting to Rp190 billion, would be diverted to build gas connections for household.
Jonan said the construction of the fuel storage tank could be offered to the private sector and the funds that had been earmarked earlier are diverted to develop Rp19 thousand gas connections for household consumers.
Thus, if the plan is realized, the government would provide some 78,809 connections for households this year.
"This year alone, the government has targeted to provide 59,809 household gas connections," Jonan noted in a press statement received in Jakarta on Saturday evening.
The government has allocated Rp817 billion of the budget to provide 59,809 household gas connections in 10 locations. This excludes the fund from the plan to build the fuel storage tank.
"We will propose that the allocation, which was earlier to be used for the construction of fuel storage tank, should be used to build gas grid. The fuel storage tank should well be offered to the private company. Therefore, the money could be used to build what is needed by the people," Jonan said in Surabaya, East Java, last May.
The 10 locations or districts for the development of gas grid connections to household consumers are in six provinces. The 10 districts will be offered 59,809 household gas connections in 2017. A total of 6,031 household gas connections will be provided in Musi Banyuasin; 5 thousand in Mojokerto City; 10,321 in Bandar Lampung; 7,426 in Kemayoran low-cost apartments; 5,375 in Pali; 3,270 in Pekanbaru City; 8 thousand in Bontang; 4.5 thousand in Samarinda; 5,101 in Mojokerto; and others in Muara Enim.
During the 2009-2016 period, the government, with the support of PGN and Pertagas Niaga, had offered 185,991 household gas connections in 26 areas across 14 provinces.
According to Antara, the government plans to offer gas connections to 3 million households by 2025 and 5 million connections by 2030.
The construction of household gas networks is one of the main priorities of President Joko Widodo. The pipeline gas network program is part of a national priority program. The government has committed to providing environment-friendly and low-cost energy to the people.
Hence, in order to facilitate the smoothness of the gas project, the government will issue a presidential regulation on the development of gas grid connections.
Energy and Natural Resources Ministry's Directorate General of Oil and Gas is drafting the Presidential Regulation on the gas grid, according to Planning Director, Alimuddin Baso.
"Establishing the country's gas network blueprint was not only the program of the ministry but also the provincial governments. Hence, I hope the regulation would later improve the harmonious relations among stakeholders," Baso said in Jakarta last month.
The regulation, according to him, would ease some procedures, mainly in terms of requiring business licenses.
Apart from simplifying procedures, the regulation would call on the central and provincial governments to support the gas grid project in the country. "We hope that the forthcoming construction would no longer be obstructed by the long and exhausted procedures on getting permission," he added. ***3***(A014/INE)EDITED BY INE
(T.A014/A/BESSR/A. Abdussalam) 10-08-2017 19:40:5 |
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