ESDM strengthens 3 kg LPG recipient database for targeted subsidies

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) is strengthening its database of 3 kg LPG recipients as part of efforts to improve distribution governance, so that the subsidised commodity can be delivered precisely to those who need it.

“For 3 kg LPG, the government is strengthening the database so that we know who is actually entitled to receive the subsidy,” said ESDM Ministry Spokesperson Dwi Anggia to ANTARA in Jakarta on Monday.

The statement relates to projections that demand for 3 kg LPG will exceed the quota set in the 2026 State Budget (APBN).

Actual distribution of 3 kg LPG up to July 2026 reached 5.05 million tonnes, against a quota of 8 million tonnes in the 2026 APBN.

The ESDM Ministry projects that by the end of 2026, distribution of 3 kg LPG will reach 8.677 million tonnes, or 108.46 percent of the quota. Meanwhile, for 2027, projected consumption of 3 kg LPG could be higher than in 2026.

Citing the 2027 Draft State Budget (RAPBN), the volume quota for 3 kg LPG is set at 8.9 million tonnes, higher than the 3 kg LPG quota in the 2026 APBN.

Anggia said the solution to the 3 kg LPG subsidy problem is not simply to increase the quota.

“If the solution is only to increase the quota, the subsidy problem will never be resolved. What we must fix is the governance,” said Anggia.

Therefore, the ESDM Ministry is currently strengthening the database so that 3 kg LPG can be distributed precisely to people who are entitled to receive the subsidy.

Anggia said system reform is the long-term solution for 3 kg LPG distribution.

“So, there are two principles that must go hand in hand: energy availability for the people must be guaranteed, but subsidies must also be increasingly well targeted,” said Anggia.