REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Commission VII of the House of Representatives (DPR) held a working meeting here on Monday with the Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Ministry.
The working meeting was attended by ESDM Minister Ignasius Jonan, Deputy ESDM Minister Arcandra Tahar and Mineral and Coal Director General Bambang Gatot Ariyono and Oil and Gas Director General I Gusti Nyoman Wiratmaja.
A number of lawmakers inquired progress made in the smelter construction and oil and gas development, and the new policy allowing export of unprocessed minerals.
The government regulation banned exports of raw minerals in 2014 hoping to force mining companies to build smelters in the country. The regulation, however, has never been consistently implemented. Some of the legislators appreciated the achievement in oil lifting in 2016.
The legislators also asked about the change in policy in oil and gas production sharing from the old system to gross split. They asked if the change would attract more investors.
Minister Jonan said he had asked the Capital Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) for help in accelerating realization of investment in the energy and mineral resources sector. He said investment commitments in the oil and gas sector reached Rp276 trillion in 2016. "I strongly ask BKPM to be more proactive that the licensing process could be faster in this sector," Jonan said.
He said high investment commitment has also been recorded in other sub-sectors of ESDM, citing investment commitments in the geothermal power development reached Rp135 trillion and in the mineral and coal sub-sector is around Rp91 trillion. "The total is around Rp500 trillion and realization at present is 20 percent," he said.
Jonan continued, if realization of the remaining 80 percent is backed up by the licensing authorities, in three years we do not need to invite more investors. It would be an extraordinary achievement. "However, there is something the government could not do to persuade investor such as oil price in the world market," the minister said.
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