January 22, 2022. The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of Indonesia will continue to boost natural gas utilization in the domestic market by encouraging large vehicles to switch from petrol to the gaseous fuel.
“We will continue coordinating with relevant institutions to promote the utilization of gas fuel in the transportation sector, particularly for large vehicles, such as trucks and buses,” the Ministry’s Director General for Oil and Natural Gas, Tutuka Ariadji, said.
The Directorate General will also encourage small vehicles, such as cars and motorcycles, to switch from petrol to electric energy, he added. The authority will promote the switch to electric energy only for small vehicles since electric energy is incompatible with large vehicles that would need a large battery to operate, he explained.
The government has proved its commitment to promoting this conversion by constructing natural gas filling stations on major routes that normally serve large vehicles, he said.
“We can also offer gas at an affordable price,” Ariadji remarked.
From 2011 until 2016, the government constructed 46 gas-filling stations in several major cities, including Jakarta, Surabaya in East Java, Palembang in South Sumatra, and Balikpapan in East Kalimantan, he noted.
Meanwhile, the Ministry’s Director for Oil and Gas Infrastructure Planning and Construction, Noor Arifin Muhammad, said that utilizing natural gas can help cut fuel costs for large vehicles by 13 percent, assuming that the gas sold for Rp 4.500 (US$0.31) per liter will replace the need to purchase 50 liters of diesel fuel, which costs Rp 5.150 (US$0.36) per liter.
Moreover, large vehicles that switch to gas will also emit fewer pollutants, making them more environmentally friendly, he argued.
