Gas allocation for domestic market increases

By Febry Silaban

Upstream authority SKK Migas said gas allocation for the domestic market has continued to increase, with 57.7 percent of the national gas output now allocated for the domestic market and the remaining 42.8 percent for export.

SKK Migas? spokesperson Taslim Yunus said the amount of gas allocated for the domestic market now stands at 4.016 bbtud and the allocation for export is 7.797 bbtud.

?Gas allocation for the domestic market continues to increase. Last year, allocation for the domestic market was 3.883 bBtud or 56 percent of the national production, while in 2014, it was 3.632 bbtud or 54 percent of the total production,? Taslim told reporters in Bandung, West Java province.

Domestically, the gas is allocated for industries, fertilizer production, power generation, households, transportation and oil lifting activities. However, the gas allocation has not been maximally absorbed.

For instance, he said, of the 1.814 bbtud allocated for industries, only 1.510 bbtud is absorbed. Meanwhile, fertilizer producers only take 718 bbtud of the 758 bbtud allocated for them; and the power sector only absorbs 1.024 bbtud of the 1.136 bbtud allocated for the sector.

Taslim blames the situation on the weakening global economy, which has affected local industries.

?The lowest absorption occurs in industries. In the current economic slowdown, many of industries in West Java and East Java have reduced their gas consumption,? Taslim said.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon