Riau expects to have more than Rp 3t from oil, gas

The Riau province planning and development agency (Bappeda) expects Riau to be able to get around Rp 3.2 trillion (US$1=Rp 9,500) this year from its oil and gas resources, according to agency deputy Roeskin Har.

Roeskin was quoted by the Kompas daily as saying that the figure was the agency's own calculation. He said that the real figure had yet to be released because the central government was still in the process of completing the government regulation on the revenue sharing mechanism.

According to the new regional autonomy policy launched by the government early this month, regions would get 15 percent from their oil resources and 30 percent from gas resources in a revenue sharing mechanism with the central government.

Riau is an oil-rich province with oil and gas firm PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia producing 750,000 barrel of oil per day.

Roeskin said that the revenue from oil and gas would add up to the Rp 2.26 trillion in special fund allocated by the central government to Riau to help finance the local administration's greater role and responsibility.

Jakarta allocates some Rp 75 trillion in special fund in the current budget year to the country's 30 provinces and more than 300 regencies to help the local administration finance their greater administrative power.(*)