Four industries prioritized to enjoy lower gas price

The government has decided to lower gas price for industries starting January of next year in a bid to help accelerate investment in the downstream sector.

Director General of Oil and Gas at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources IGN Wiratmaja said in a statement issued Thursday that upstream gas producers will not suffer any losses from the lower gas price policy as the burden will be shouldered by the government in the form of reduction in non-tax revenue from gas sales.

He said that gas with a price of US$6-8 per mmbtu will be reduced by up to $1 per mmbtu, while gas with a price of more than $8 per mmbtu will be reduced by $1-2 per mmbtu (12.5-25%).

Wiratmaja explained four industries will be prioritized to enjoy the lower gas price including industries which use gas as raw material such as fertilizer and petrochemical; strategic industries; industries which use gas in production process; and manufacturing industries employing huge number of workers.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak