Gas Prices Affecting Business

The industry urged the government to lower the price of gas industry. Gas prices are competitive not merely to compete. However, for some industries, the price of gas is a factor that affects efforts to maintain business continuity. "According to our records, there were six factories in Java to temporarily stop production," said Chairman of the Association of Ceramic Industry Aneka Indonesia (Asaki) Elisa Sinaga.

According to Elisa, the mills closed because of competition in the market working. This condition occurs when the ceramics demand fell due to a decrease in the property sector. Therefore, imported ceramics also makes for a cheaper price. In contrast to the large-scale enterprises that have large capital reserves, the factory stopped production does not have enough cash flow to survive in conditions of almost no profit margin.

Based on data from Asaki, the price of gas for the ceramic industry in North Sumatra zone is currently about 12.4 US dollars per million metric British thermal unit (MMBTU) and in South Sumatra 9.7 US dollars per MMBTU Meanwhile, the price of gas for the ceramics industry East Java zone of 8.03 uS dollars per MMBTU and in the zone of West Java 9.16 uS dollars per MMBTU "If it can not come around 6 dollars per MMBTU as expected, we have reached the stage of asking, now the government can decrease how The US dollar used to be? "said Elisa.

According to Elisa, the decline in gas prices is no longer only about the company's competitiveness and ability to sustain the effort. Certainty decline in gas prices is needed to maintain business confidence against the government since last 1.5 years has been committed to lower gas prices. Gathering on the Indonesian Employers Association CEO, last week, Chairman of the Association of Food and Beverage Indonesia Adhi S Lukman said the President Joko Widodo has repeatedly asked for the price of gas down. "We repeatedly meeting with relevant ministries, including the EMR," said Adhi. However, Adhi said that so far the results are announced new gas price reduction for some industries, such as chemical fertilizers and upstream. "We waited a decrease in gas prices, because frankly the competitiveness of our industry is very bad," he said.

Earlier, Chairman of the Indonesian Employers Association said Johnny Darmawan, keywords in manufacturing to produce goods is competitive prices. "The price reflects the cost of production," he said.

IN INDONESIAN

Harga Gas Memengaruhi Usaha

Kalangan industri mendesak pemerintah agar menurunkan harga gas industri. Harga gas yang kompetitif tidak semata-mata untuk bersaing. Akan tetapi, bagi beberapa industri, harga gas merupakan faktor yang memengaruhi upaya mempertahankan kelangsungan usaha. ”Menurut catatan kami, sudah ada enam pabrik di Jawa yang untuk sementara stop produksi,” kata Ketua Umum Asosiasi Aneka Industri Keramik Indonesia (Asaki) Elisa Sinaga.

Menurut Elisa, pabrik tersebut tutup karena kalah bersaing dalam menggarap pasar. Kondisi ini terjadi pada saat permintaan keramik turun akibat penurunan sektor properti. Karena itu, keramik impor juga masuk dengan harga lebih murah. Berbeda dengan perusahaan skala besar yang mempunyai cadangan modal besar, pabrik yang berhenti produksi tersebut tidak memiliki cukup arus kas untuk bertahan dengan kondisi nyaris tanpa margin keuntungan.

Berdasarkan data Asaki, harga gas untuk industri keramik di zona Sumatera Utara saat ini sekitar 12,4 dollar AS per juta metrik british thermal unit (MMBTU) dan di Sumatera Selatan 9,7 dollar AS per MMBTU Sementara itu, harga gas untuk industri keramik di zona Jawa Timur 8,03 dollar AS per MMBTU dan di zona Jawa Barat 9,16 dollar AS per MMBTU ”Kalau memang belum bisa turun di sekitar 6 dollar AS per MMBTU seperti yang diharapkan, kami sudah sampai tahap bertanya, sekarang pemerintah bisa menurunkan berapa dollar AS dulu?” kata Elisa.

Menurut Elisa, penurunan harga gas tidak lagi hanya menyangkut daya saing dan kemampuan perusahaan mempertahankan usaha. Kepastian penurunan harga gas dibutuhkan untuk menjaga kepercayaan dunia usaha terhadap pemerintah yang sejak 1,5 tahun lalu sudah berkomitmen akan menurunkan harga gas. Pada CEO Gathering Asosiasi Pengusaha Indonesia, akhir pekan lalu, Ketua Umum Gabungan Pengusaha Makanan dan Minuman Indonesia Adhi S Lukman mengatakan, Presiden Joko Widodo sudah berkali-kali meminta harga gas diturunkan. ”Kami berkali-kali rapat dengan kementerian terkait, termasuk ESDM,” kata Adhi. Namun, Adhi mengatakan, sejauh ini hasil yang diumumkan baru penurunan harga gas untuk beberapa industri, seperti pupuk dan kimia hulu. ”Kami menunggu penurunan harga gas, karena terus terang daya saing industri kita sangat jelek,” katanya. 

Sebelumnya, Ketua Asosiasi Pengusaha Indonesia Johnny Darmawan mengatakan, kata kunci di manufaktur untuk memproduksi barang adalah harga yang bersaing. ”Harga merefleksikan biaya produksi,” ujarnya.

Kompas, Page-18, Tuesday, Feb, 7,2017