Prabowo Requests Alternative Technology to Reduce LPG Dependency

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - President Prabowo Subianto has requested alternative technologies to reduce dependence on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), whose prices have risen in recent times.

This request was conveyed by Prabowo when he met with Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology Brin Yuliarto at the Presidential Palace Complex in Jakarta on Monday (27/4/2026).

“It was related to several alternative technologies to reduce LPG,” said Brin after meeting Prabowo at the Palace on Monday.

He mentioned that dependence on LPG imports is quite high, so it must be reduced.

“LPG, we have very high dependence on imports, and prices are also rising. So, universities were asked to find other sources; there are several very potential sources,” he said.

Brin said he would mobilise higher education institutions to conduct research on those alternative LPG technologies.

“But we will conduct all the research to support the Minister of ESDM,” Brin added.

Director General of Oil and Gas of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Laode Sulaeman said the price increase was triggered by escalating geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East throughout March 2026.

“The rise in global crude oil prices was triggered by the escalation of conflicts involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, which directly impacts the world’s energy supply,” he said, quoted from Antara.

One of the most influential factors is the closure of global energy distribution routes, the Strait of Hormuz.

Before the war, that route was passed by around 20 percent of ships carrying the world’s oil supply.