Official Regulation Issued! This Agency Prepared to Import Oil and LPG
The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) is preparing a larger role for the Large Center for Oil and Gas Testing (Lemigas) in the management of national energy procurement. Under Presidential Regulation (Perpres) Number 2CO26 of 2026, Lemigas has the opportunity to become one of the Public Service Agencies (BLU) authorised to conduct procurement, including the import of crude oil, fuel (BBM), and LPG.
Deputy Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Yuliot Tanjung, stated that the government will not establish new BLUs to perform these functions. Instead, the government will optimise existing institutions within the Ministry of ESDM, specifically Lemigas. According to Yuliot, this arrangement is part of the implementation of Perpres Number 26 of 2026 regarding Domestic Oil Procurement, which provides space not only for State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) but also for energy-sector BLUs to conduct oil procurement.
However, he explained that the government continues to prioritise domestic energy supplies. The regulation stipulates that crude oil produced by Production Sharing Contract (PSC) contractors should be prioritised for domestic needs, particularly when global supplies are limited. “From this regulation, crude procurement can originate from domestic production by domestic PSC companies. Due to global supply constraints, if there are export commitments from PSC companies, they can be marketed domestically. The price will align with the Indonesian Crude Price (ICP) so as not to disadvantage the PSC companies themselves,” Yuliot said.
President Prabowo Subianto has officially issued Perpres Number 26 of 2026 concerning the Procurement of Crude Oil, Fuel (BBM), and/or Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for National Energy Security. This policy serves as a new legal umbrella for the government to guarantee national energy availability, including opening avenues for energy-sector BLUs to import oil and fuel.
Article 2 of the regulation states that the primary objective is to maintain good governance in the procurement of crude oil, fuel, and LPG, while enhancing supply continuity, energy system reliability, and national energy security. The scope covers procurement from both domestic and imported sources. For domestic procurement, Article 3 stipulates that crude oil shall come from national upstream oil and gas activities, while fuel and LPG shall come from the production of oil and gas refineries operated by energy sector business entities.
Article 4 regulates the mechanism for import procurement, outlining three pathways: inter-governmental cooperation, cooperation between the Central Government and foreign providers, and cooperation between energy sector business entities and foreign suppliers. The regulation specifies that for imports conducted through inter-governmental or central government agreements, implementation may be carried out by energy-sector BLUs and/or BUMNs.
Furthermore, the regulation provides greater flexibility during emergencies. Article 5, Paragraph 1, allows BLUs and BUMNs to conduct imports under specific criteria, including: geopolitical conditions that threaten global availability; supply chain disruptions; disasters or force majeure in supplier countries; supply limitations causing high price fluctuations; or when national reserves fall below a certain threshold. The Minister is authorised to declare an emergency based on these criteria. Notably, Article 5, Paragraph 3, allows for price variations in emergency imports based on quantity, product type, country of origin, or delivery timing, as per the purchase contract agreements.