PGN ready to face Walhi’s lawsuit

State-owned gas utility PT Perushaan Gas Negara (PGN) said it was ready to face environmental watchdog Walhi, which threatened to file a lawsuit against the company at the Lampung court, Bisnis Indonesia daily reported in its Monday edition.

PGN coordinator for gas distribution and transmission project Iwan Heryawan, however, said his company has not yet received the copy of Walhi’s suit.

“We have not received the legal notice regarding Walhi’s lawsuit, but we are trying to meet with Walhi to talk about this," Iwan told the Bisnis on Sunday in Jakarta.

Last week, Walhi announced that it will file a law suit against PGN at state court in Lampung. Walhi asked PGN to stop its gas pipeline project from South Sumatra to West Java.

The project, according to Walhi, had not been informed to the public, though the project was started in 1986. Walhi demanded transparency in PGN project.

So far, PGN had just submitted only the original documents regarding analysis concerning environmental impact (Amdal) and the permission granted by Lampung governor on February 16, 2004, Walhi said. (*)