Indonesia has temporarily cut its natural gas export allocation to Singapore by a total of 31 BBTUD, starting Saturday 24 October. The reduction is meant to redirect supply to domestic electricity and industry in Batam, Bintan and Sumatra. Of the cut, 15 BBTUD comes from Natuna and 16 BBTUD from Sumatra. Singapore’s daily gas demand is affected by less than 2 percent, the authority said.
Survival mode at home
Clearly the direction is that our natural resources will first be used for domestic interests, he said. This is survival mode.
Indonesia’s domestic electricity generation and downstream petrochemical industry are the stated beneficiaries.
Regional reaction and tensions
Dinna Prapto Raharja, a diplomacy practitioner and co-founder of Synergy Policies, said she regretted the action. It does not take into account Indonesia’s long-term interests in the region and internationally, she said.
Raharja described the move as a mix of resource nationalism and a reactive political response to external criticism. The article links the tensions to disputes over forest and land fires and to Singapore’s Transboundary Haze Pollution Act.
Singapore’s electricity supply, the Energy Market Authority said, remains secure through global LNG supply.
