Yesterday's Economy: Prabowo on Fuel Oil Production to Platform Workers Law

Jakarta — The Indonesian News Agency (ANTARA) reported various economic developments on Wednesday (11 March), ranging from President Prabowo Subianto’s remarks on alternative biofuel sources from maize and sugarcane to preparations for the Platform Workers Protection Law.

President Prabowo highlighted that Indonesia possesses numerous alternative energy sources amid the global crisis, including the capacity to produce biofuel from maize and sugarcane. “We have many alternatives. We are confident that we will address this challenge. Many countries are in worse conditions than us. We have large quantities of palm oil. We will have sufficient cassava. We can obtain fuel oil from maize, from sugarcane,” stated Prabowo during remarks at the first anniversary celebration of Danantara in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The Ministry of Finance reported that net tax revenues reached 245.1 trillion rupiah, growing 30.4 per cent year-on-year, through the end of February 2026. This realisation represents 10.4 per cent of the 2026 state budget target. Meanwhile, customs and excise revenues reached 44.9 trillion rupiah, or approximately 13.4 per cent of target, though this experienced a contraction of 14.7 per cent compared to the same period in the previous year.

President Prabowo has ordered the development of solar power generation (PLTS) with capacity of 100 gigawatts to drive electrification and national energy self-sufficiency. He described this initiative as part of the government’s efforts to accelerate the transition towards renewable energy whilst strengthening Indonesia’s energy resilience.

The Commission XI of the Indonesian House of Representatives agreed to appoint Friderica Widyasari Sari (known as Kiki) as Chair of the Financial Services Authority (OJK) Board of Commissioners for the 2026-2031 period. The Commission also agreed on Hernawan Bekti Sasongko as Vice-Chair of the OJK Board of Commissioners.

The Minister of Labour, Yassierli, revealed that the ministry is preparing the Platform Workers Protection Law. “Our ultimate goal is to establish special regulation for them (platform workers), which will take the form of legislation,” said the Minister during a podcast interview at the Ministry of Labour headquarters in Jakarta on Wednesday.