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Indonesia to increase electricity subsidies for the poor

The Indonesian government will consider increasing power subsidies in 2016 to serve the electricity demands of the impoverished, especially those in rural and remote areas, said Minister of Finance Bambang Brodjonegoro on July 7.
The Indonesian government will consider increasing power subsidies in2016 to serve the electricity demands of the impoverished, especiallythose in rural and remote areas, said Minister of Finance BambangBrodjonegoro on July 7.

Earlier, the budget committee called on multi-targeted power subsidies to be applied in budget plans next year.

Some44.6 million households in the country are currently benefiting frompower subsidies, the finance minister said, adding that the new subsidywould increase equality as households are covering the same power costsas businesses, restaurants and hotels.

In 2015, power subsidieswere estimated to cover 73 trillion rupiahs (over 5.4 billion USD),rising 4.4 trillion rupiah (330 million USD) from 2014 due to energychanges and insufficient subsidies in 2014.

Electricity supply shortages have negatively affected livelihoods and economic development in the thousand-island state.

Ina bid to meet the increasing demands for power nationwide, thegovernment plans to develop power plants with a total capacity of 35,000megawatts in the next five years.

The Minister of Energy andMineral Resources Sudirman Said said that the plants will be constructedat the cost of 1.12 trillion rupiahs (88 billion USD) in over 200localities of Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and other regions ineastern Indonesia.-VNA
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