Crude imports to decline on higher gas use: Minister

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro has said that the increasing trend in the use of gas by local industries particularly power plants could further reduce the country’s spending for crude oil imports in the future to around US$2 billion a year, Bisnis Indonesia reported on Tuesday.

The minister said that the diversification of the fuel use by local industries particularly power plants has resulted in the increase in the use of gas during the past several years. “ A study indicates that by 2018, the share of gas in the country’s fuel utilization will reach 36 percent. With the assumption, the crude oil imports can be reduced to US$2 billion,” he said.

He did not provide comparative figures.

He, however, said that the lack of pipe network facilities would pose a major problem in further increasing the gas utilization. He said that the gas pipelines networks linking Sumatra and West Java and those connecting East Kalimantan and East Java could be built as expected, the use of gas in the country could be increased to 43 trillion cubic feet a year in 2018.

He said that without the participation of investors it would be difficult to realize the gas pipeline projects, which would cost some US$29 billion within the next 14 years. (*)