LNG Price Fluctuations Confirmed to Track Global Oil Prices

Jakarta – Adjusting energy prices amid geopolitical dynamics is a challenge that must be faced collectively, particularly for non-subsidised energy such as liquefied natural gas (LNG). Oil and gas practitioner Widhyawan Prawiraatmadja stated that LNG prices are spot-based and have certainly risen because the benchmark price index for the Asia Pacific region, the Japan Korea Marker (JKM) price, has experienced a significant surge. “The acquisition price of LNG depends on whether it is based on a contract or a spot purchase. Spot can be cheaper or more expensive, as is the case now. If it follows the market price, then price fluctuations are normal, and that is what all LNG users face,” said Wawan, as he is familiarly known, quoted on Wednesday, 24 June 2026. He elaborated that current market data records the JKM index throughout 2026 has increased by approximately 111 per cent. “So it has indeed risen quite high,” he stressed. This increase has also driven up the Indonesian Crude Price (ICP), which is set by the government based proportionally on the JCC and Brent. In April 2026, the ICP was recorded as having risen by about 99 per cent compared to the initial plan for the year. Apart from being spot-based, Wawan, who served as Indonesia’s Governor for OPEC from 2015 to 2016, explained that LNG prices can also be based on agreements between sellers and buyers. “Buyers who have contractual agreements usually use an oil price basis (oil index),” he clarified. Furthermore, LNG contracts originating from Indonesia are still tied to export commitments, so to avoid more detrimental conditions, agreements must be reached that continue to honour contractual export obligations. In Indonesia, the reference for contractual sale and purchase agreements refers to the ICP, whereas abroad it generally refers to the Brent price. “For example, based on a percentage of the oil price, that is called the slope. The percentage varies depending on when the contract was negotiated and signed. When supply is abundant, the slope tends to shrink, and vice versa,” said the lecturer at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). Wawan revealed that in the current situation, the increase in LNG prices is not only occurring in Indonesia but also in all countries, including developing nations in the region. Market data shows that industrial LNG prices in the Philippines currently reach around USD 28.50 per MMBTU (S&P Global / Shell FGEN 2026) and in Vietnam around USD 27.81 per MMBTU (Petrovietnam / IEEFA 2026).