Workers’ Party urges honouring of Indonesia gas contracts amid export cut
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Singapore’s Workers’ Party said it regrets Indonesia’s reduction of natural gas shipments and called for contracts to be respected while highlighting the need for energy diversification.
Singapore’s opposition Workers’ Party said it regrets Indonesia’s decision to cut natural gas exports to Singapore, if the move was prompted by recent unrelated developments, and stressed the need to honour international commercial contracts. The party’s statement, posted on Facebook on Oct 25, backed Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s earlier call for commercial gas supply contracts to be respected.
The WP noted that the current reduction – 31 billion British thermal units per day (BBTUD) from pipelines in Natuna and Sumatra – appears tolerable, but it underscores the importance of diversifying Singapore’s energy supply chains amid an increasingly unpredictable international environment.
Indonesia announced the cut on Oct 24 to prioritise domestic energy needs. The Energy Market Authority later estimated that the reduction amounted to about 17 BBTUD over 18 days, less than 2 % of Indonesia’s daily gas demand.
The party also referenced recent tensions over trans-boundary haze and allegations that Singapore’s sovereign-wealth funds had pressured MSCI to downgrade Indonesia’s market classification. Former trade minister Muhammad Lutfi made the claim on Oct 20; both GIC and Temasek rejected it, with Temasek describing the allegation as "patently untrue".
The WP reminded that Parliament was informed in 2023 that piped gas supplies from Indonesia would decline, but that electricity supply to consumers would not be affected. It said its MPs have been monitoring the issue through parliamentary questions and will continue to raise energy-security concerns.
"Patently untrue" – statement from Temasek rejecting the market-downgrade allegation.
The party said it would file additional haze-related questions for the upcoming parliamentary sitting and keep speaking on energy and economic policies.