Indonesia mulls halting gas exports to neighbouring countries citing 'survival'

Indonesia is considering the possibility of terminating gas export contracts with neighbouring countries, said the country's Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia on Wednesday (Oct 21).

Bahlil, who has also been the leader of Golkar party since August 2024, made these comments to the media after attending a plenary meeting at the State Palace in Jakarta, marking the second anniversary of President Prabowo Subianto's administration.

Indonesian media outlets reported the minister as saying that the option is being considered in response to Prabowo's directive that require Indonesia to adopt a survival-oriented approach amid geopolitical tensions and global energy challenges.

"As state officials, we must translate what President Prabowo has said into concrete programmes to ensure the country's survival," the Jakarta Globe quoted Bahlil as saying.

He added that the government could reassess its energy exports, particularly natural gas, to ensure domestic demand is first met, before additional supplies are allocated for overseas exports.

"I am also considering not renewing gas export contracts with neighbouring countries," the minister said.

On Thursday, Bahlil doubled-down on his comments during the inauguration of a gas facility.

News agency Antara reported the minister as saying that while he is ready to collaborate on energy exports with other countries that have mutually beneficial and respectful relationships, he is similarly prepared to evaluate energy exports with other countries deemed "uncooperative and disrespectful".

"So, if other countries want a different view of us, be careful. I might also consider not renewing gas exports to neighboring countries," Bahlil said.

The minister did not appear to have named any countries.

Singapore is one of Indonesia's LNG export destinations

Indonesia is known to have export contracts with several major Asian economies, including China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

Indonesia is one of the main sources for natural gas imports for Singapore, with current contracts between the two countries expiring in end-2028.

But Indonesia recalibrating to focus on its domestic needs is not new.

In September 2023, Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister and then-Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong stated in a parliamentary reply that no country accounted for more than 30 per cent of the city state's gas imports.

He was responding to a question from MP Saktiandi Supaat (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC), who had asked about potential energy implications from Indonesia's recalibration of the liquified natural gas (LNG) trade, including its shift towards imports from the US and prioritisation for domestic use.

In his reply, DPM Gan emphasised that it is critical for Singapore to ensure the sufficiency and diversity of its natural gas supplies.

"To this end, we have built a LNG terminal, which started operations in 2013. The LNG terminal allows us to import LNG from various suppliers around the world. In fact, LNG now accounts for close to 60 per cent of our total natural gas supplies."

DPM Gan added that Singapore is also building a second LNG terminal to increase its import capacity.

According to the Energy Market Authority, 40 per cent of Singapore's natural gas supply comes from Malaysia and Indonesia pipelines, while the rest was supplied by sea from markets around the world.

He also pointed out that Singapore will continue to diversify its energy mix, and that the city state is on track to install at least 2 Gigawatt-peak (GWp) of solar capacity by 2030.

That target was achieved ahead of schedule, and has since been raised to 3GWp.

Meanwhile, Singapore GasCo was set up in 2025 as a central gas aggregator , reshaping its national gas procurement.

It is intended to ensure that the country is "adequately contracted" for natural gas at all times.

印尼能源和矿产资源部长巴赫利尔·拉哈达利亚周三（10月21日）表示，印尼正在考虑终止与邻国的天然气出口合同的可能性。

自 2024 年 8 月以来一直担任戈尔卡党领导人的巴赫利尔在雅加达总统府参加纪念普拉博沃·苏比安托总统执政两周年全体会议后，向媒体发表了上述评论。

印尼媒体报道称，该部长表示，正在考虑这一选项，以响应普拉博沃的指示，即在当前地缘政治紧张局势和全球能源挑战下，印尼必须采取以生存为导向的方针。

据《雅加达环球报》报道，巴赫利尔表示：“作为国家官员，我们必须将普拉博沃总统的讲话转化为具体的方案，以确保国家的生存。”

他还补充说，政府可以重新评估其能源出口，特别是天然气出口，以确保首先满足国内需求，然后再分配额外的供应用于海外出口。

“我还在考虑不再与邻国续签天然气出口合同，”这位部长说。

周四，巴赫利尔在天然气设施落成典礼上再次重申了他的言论。

安塔拉通讯社报道称，这位部长表示，虽然他准备与那些与他有着互利互惠、互相尊重关系的国家在能源出口方面进行合作，但他同样准备评估与那些被认为“不合作、不尊重”的国家进行能源出口的可能性。

“所以，如果其他国家对我们有不同的看法，那就小心点。我可能还会考虑不再向邻国出口天然气，”巴赫利尔说。

这位部长似乎没有点名任何国家。

新加坡是印尼液化天然气出口目的地之一。

众所周知，印度尼西亚与包括中国、日本、韩国、新加坡、马来西亚和泰国在内的几个亚洲主要经济体签订了出口合同。

印度尼西亚是新加坡天然气进口的主要来源国之一，两国之间的现有合同将于 2028 年底到期。

但印尼调整战略以专注于国内需求并非新鲜事。

2023 年 9 月，新加坡副总理兼时任贸易及工业部长颜金勇在国会答复中表示，没有哪个国家占新加坡天然气进口量的 30% 以上。

他是在回应议员萨克蒂安迪·苏帕特（碧山-大巴窑集选区）的提问，苏帕特询问印尼重新调整液化天然气（LNG）贸易（包括转向从美国进口和优先用于国内用途）可能带来的能源影响。

副总理颜金勇在答复中强调，确保新加坡天然气供应充足和多样化至关重要。

“为此，我们建造了一座液化天然气接收站，该接收站于2013年投入运营。该接收站使我们能够从世界各地的不同供应商进口液化天然气。事实上，液化天然气现在占我们天然气总供应量的近60%。”

副总理颜金勇补充说，新加坡还在建设第二个液化天然气接收站，以提高其进口能力。

据能源市场管理局称，新加坡 40% 的天然气供应来自马来西亚和印度尼西亚的管道，其余部分则通过海运从世界各地的市场供应。

他还指出，新加坡将继续实现能源结构多元化，并且该城邦国家有望在 2030 年前安装至少 2 吉瓦峰值 (GWp) 的太阳能发电容量。

该目标提前实现，此后已提高到 3GWp。

与此同时，新加坡天然气公司（Singapore GasCo）于 2025 年成立，作为中央天然气聚合商，重塑了其国家天然气采购模式。

其目的是确保该国始终拥有充足的天然气供应。