Jakarta, June 25 -- The Indonesian government is accelerating the adoption of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in an effort to replace and reduce Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) imports, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said.

"There is no other way to curb the drain on our foreign exchange reserves and cut subsidies. We need an energy mix. That is why we are pushing for CNG now," Bahlil said in Jakarta on Thursday.

He explained that the government is turning to CNG because it utilizes methane and ethane (C1 and C2 gases), which are abundant domestically.

Furthermore, the minister highlighted that the kerosene-to-LPG conversion program launched in 2006 was initially a good concept and initiative.

However, he noted that ...