Jakarta –
Indonesia is currently being hit by a coal crisis. Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) Erick Thohir said if this happened because of a big mistake.
Erick even decided to remove the Primary Energy Director of PT PLN (Persero) Rudy Hendra Prastowo because PLN was experiencing a coal crisis. According to Erick, Indonesia is currently a coal-producing country and is considered capable of meeting electricity needs.
Rudy was replaced by Hartanto Wibowo, whom Erick called a top talent at PLN. At a young age, Hartanto is considered to have qualified abilities.
Erick also asked Hartanto to fix the problem of the coal supply crisis at PLN.
He also highlighted that other countries that do not have natural resources are not experiencing an energy crisis. “What does it mean, there is something that we must fix together,” he said, at the Ministry of SOEs.
According to him, this energy supply has been observed since early 2021. Especially since La Nina hit and this has an impact on coal distribution.
He has even chaired this meeting since January, when there was a shortage of natural resources needed for electricity.
Erick added that the supply cycle should have been anticipated. He said it would be a big mistake for this supply problem to be unplanned.
“Therefore, if we, as a country with large natural resources, do not have a plan, let alone do not take care not to become a crisis, this is a big mistake,” he said.
Erick said President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) had emphasized the importance of shared responsibility for economic development. He continued, the economy will not improve without the presence of electricity.
“It’s impossible for our economy to continue to grow without electricity. We’ll just use electricity later,” he said.
See also the video ‘Jokowi Stops Coal Exports Efforts to Face the Energy Crisis’:
(kil/eds)
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