Annual mining officials meeting ends with realignment plans

Annual mining officials meeting ends with realignment plans

JAKARTA (JP): Officials of the Ministry of Mines and Energy
and its state-owned companies ended their three-day annual
meeting here with commitments to realigning management and
streamlining bureaucracy in their offices.

"A lack of coordination among officials of the ministry and
its companies has partly made bureaucracy in the ministry more
complicated," Minister of Mines and Energy Ida Bagus Sudjana told
reporters after closing the meeting at the state-owned oil
company Pertamina's headquarters here yesterday.

In line with President Soeharto's suggestion that all
companies under the ministry's management improve their
efficiency, the meeting has formulated restructuring programs,
which are ready to be implemented in the next five years, he
said.

All the programs prepared by state companies should be soon
submitted to the ministry for further studies by a special
committee for development, he said. "I hope the programs can
improve efficiency and the working spirit of both our officials
and investors joining our projects," he said.

"The ministry has also asked the state electricity company
PLN, which has representative offices in provinces, regencies and
districts throughout the country, to share its facilities with
local officials of the ministry for dealing with issues related
to mining and energy industries," he said.

This is an efficiency effort on the part of the ministry,
considering that the ministry thus far has representatives in
only 15 provinces, he said, adding that the cooperation with PLN
will start as soon as possible after a special team finishes
details of the plan this year.

Sudjana is optimistic that the expanded offices will help the
ministry to manage and control the bureaucracy in the country.

Total scheme

In addition to streamlining bureaucracy, Sudjana said that his
ministry is now also introducing a one-stop service to investors
interested in gas exploration and production activities.

Suyitno Patmosukismo, director general of oil and gas,
explained that the new mechanism will streamline the negotiation
procedures, because the scheme will cover all items, from
exploration to sale arrangements.

He said that in the next five year, his office will invite
foreign investors to develop small-scale gas businesses.

"To anticipate the intensification of small gas businesses,
the Directorate General of Oil and Gas will construct an
integrated gas distribution piping system in the country, thereby
enabling them to distribute their products through the network,"
he said.

"The first step of the distribution network is to carry gas
which is produced by companies in Sumatra to consumers in Java,"
he said.

PLN's director for program development, Kodyat Samadikun, said
that the company is now also preparing a new interconnected
network linking Java and other islands in the country.

"The new planned interconnected system is expected to help
distribute power to islands other than Java and Bali," he said,
adding that the planned project is expected to attract investors
to compete for its construction.

Pertamina's president, Faisal Abda'oe, said that his company
is also committed to improving its efficiency to reduce
production costs in its refineries.

"We will also cut costs for oil transportation and
distribution," he said.

Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, director general of mines, told The
Jakarta Post that he plans to invite more investors for mining
phosphorous and kaolin in the country. (fhp)