Arun NGL says regasification project urgent

By Godang Sitompul

PT Arun NGL said that the planned construction of an LNG receiving terminal in Aceh has become increasingly urgent as production of the LNG plant continues to drop and is expected to completely stop in 2014.

?If the (Arun) regasification project can proceed, there are a lot of things that can be done (with the resulting gas production), for example supporting and revitalizing (fertilizer firms) Pupuk Iskandar Muda, Pupuk Asean Aceh Fertilizer, and other industries around Aceh. The most important thing to be discussed now is where the (necessary) LNG (supply) will come from,? said PT Arun NGL President Director M. Iqbal Hasan to Petromindo.com Tuesday.

Iqbal acknowledged that out of the company?s six LNG trains, only one train still in production. ?Even this is not running at full capacity. Only about 60 percent. And the cargo is destined for South Korea until 2014,? he said.

?That?s why the regasification project must be implemented now, not later when production fully stops,? Iqbal said, pointing out that when production fully stops, the company?s employees will have to be laid off, and that the production facility will be more difficult to be restarted after stopping operation for long.

?According to Pak Dahlan (State Minister of State Owned Enterprises), the regasification plant has proceeded, and it is expected to start production in 2013,? he said.

As reported earlier, one of the toughest obstacles faced by the project is securing the LNG supply. The government has opened the possibility for Arun to get the LNG from overseas sources, but there are concerns that it would mean that domestic consumers such as fertilizer plants to pay for the gas at international prices.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak