Indonesia warns it could review energy exports to countries that ‘disrespect’ it

JAKARTA – Indonesia could stop exporting energy to countries that “disrespect” it, a senior minister warned on Oct 22, a day after suggesting that Jakarta might not renew gas export contracts with neighbouring countries.The comments came after President Prabowo Subianto called on Indonesia to safeguard its natural resources and prioritise national interests, saying the country was facing challenging circumstances that required it to focus on its survival.Coordinating Minister for Downstreaming and Energy Transition, Bahlil Lahadalia, said Jakarta would review its energy export agreements with countries that failed to show mutual respect, although he did not name any specific country.“I will conduct an evaluation. I will not hesitate to consider stopping exports to countries that do not respect Indonesia,” Bahlil, who is also Minister of Energy and Mineral Resource, said at an event marking the commissioning of gas production facilities on Oct 22 in Jakarta.Bahlil, who is chairman of the Golkar Party, said disagreements between countries should be resolved through dialogue and mutual respect, although he did not specify which countries or disputes he was referring to.“Don’t come begging when you need something, but when there is another issue that can actually be discussed, behave like a relative who has no manners. This is what we do not want,” he said.He added that Indonesia remained open to concluding energy export agreements with countries that treated it as an equal, even if they did not currently have contracts with Jakarta.His latest remarks followed his comments on Oct 21, when he raised the possibility of not renewing gas export contracts with neighbouring countries to prioritise domestic needs.“I am also perhaps thinking of not extending gas exports to neighbouring countries, because we have to survive and meet domestic needs,” he told reporters after a Cabinet meeting in Jakarta.Prabowo had earlier likened the country’s natural resources to blood, warning that a body could not survive if it continued to lose blood. He urged ministers to ensure that Indonesia’s resources were used for the benefit of its people.Indonesia exported natural gas to several countries in 2025, including Japan, China, Singapore and South Korea.Data from Indonesia’s Central Statistics Agency showed that Japan received about 3.8 million tonnes, followed by China (3.79 million tonnes), Singapore (3.22 million tonnes) and South Korea (2.27 million tonnes).Other destinations in South-east Asia included Thailand and the Philippines, which received about 291,000 tonnes and 138,000 tonnes respectively.Bahlil did not identify any country in either set of remarks.Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong said in Parliament in September 2025 that Indonesia was one of the Republic’s main sources of natural gas, with existing import contracts due to expire at the end of 2028.Separately, the two countries are pursuing plans for Indonesia to export low-carbon electricity to Singapore, although negotiations over pricing remain unresolved.Singapore is the only country with which Indonesia has signed an electricity export agreement, according to Reuters, although Jakarta is also exploring broader regional power grid connections with other neighbours.On Oct 19, Bahlil said discussions over electricity exports to Singapore had yet to reach an agreement because of differences over pricing.Earlier, on Oct 7, he said Indonesia would review its electricity export arrangements to ensure the country received greater economic benefits, including having a say in pricing and project development.Singapore’s Energy Market Authority has granted conditional licences to six Indonesian electricity import projects with a combined capacity of 3 gigawatts.The two countries are also working towards developing at least 3.4 gigawatts of cross-border electricity projects by 2035.Hariz Baharudin is Indonesia correspondent at The Straits Times. He has an interest in Indonesia and the wider currents shaping South-east Asia.