Indonesia May Opt for Preferential LNG Exports

Indonesia's energy regulator, SKKMigas said Friday that nations willing to invest in the country's hydrocarbon sector would get priority for liquefied natural gas deliveries as rising domestic demand has curtailed the amount of gas available for export, Dow Jones Newswire has reported.

"As domestic demand has increased rapidly, priority is now given to supply domestic customers. However, with current and future potential reserves, Indonesia will be able to maintain its contribution to the export market," Widhyawan Prawiraatmadja, deputy of planning at SKKMigas, said at the LNG Supplies for Asian Markets conference in Singapore.

Prawiraatmadja said the government is caught in a dilemma between controlling hydrocarbon output for domestic needs and attracting oil and gas majors to prevent exploration activity from stagnating, the news report said.

However, Indonesia needs to attract foreign investment in the upstream hydrocarbon sector to help develop new reserves and maintain economic growth, he said.