"The President's directive is to secure gas supply and we have prepared the scenario," he informed here on Tuesday.
Tasrif said the gas supply is mainly devoted to industries in Sumatra.
"That's for industries, especially in North Sumatra, with critical areas in Aceh," he informed.
He said that so far, the supply of subsidized fertilizers in the country has remained under control.
"Yes, it's subsidized fertilizer. For food, subsidized fertilizer is used. So, it's not expensive and the supply is also sufficient," he added.
"The allocation is more than 7 million tons for subsidized fertilizer. God willing, it will be safe if it is to support the need for fertilizer, for food agriculture," Tasrif informed.
Earlier, while inaugurating a nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) fertilizer factory in Aceh on February 10, 2023, President Widodo requested that national fertilizer production be boosted to overcome fertilizer problems.
"I want the capacity of 570 thousand tons here to be doubled to 1.14 million tons. I hope this will really be used optimally to resolve farmers' grievances," he said on Friday.
President Widodo said the need for fertilizer nationally has reached 13.5 million tons. However, currently, only 3.5 million tons has been fulfilled.
He further said that in Aceh, two fertilizer factories have stopped operating—PT Aceh ASEAN Fertilizer (AAF) and PT PIM. The operational constraints for the two companies have been due to gas supply delays.
The President then ordered Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), Erick Thohir, to re-operationalize the two fertilizer factories.
For the re-operation of PT PIM, an investment of Rp1.7 trillion is required to develop the NPK industry as well as port facilities for logistics.
The President also asked for a commitment from the Ministry of BUMN, PT Pupuk Indonesia, and the management of PT PIM on finding a solution for the gas issue.
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Translator: Desca Lidya Natalia, Katriana
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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