Indonesia's Electricity Price Lowest in ASEAN: Ministry

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has claimed that electricity tariffs in Indonesia are, and will remain, the lowest in Southeast Asia region as an effort to maintain public purchasing power amid the pandemic and geopolitical conflict that results in energy price hike.

Head of communication, public information services, and cooperation bureau at the Ministry Agung Pribadi said the Indonesian government is committed to safeguarding the national economy, and the attempt is also by ensuring electricity tariffs to stay affordable.

“We can ensure that electricity tariffs in Indonesia are relatively cheap compared to other countries in ASEAN,” Pribadi said in a statement on Tuesday, April 5.

State-owned electricity company PLN revealed that tariff for non-subsidized households is Rp1,445 (US$0.1) per kilowatt-hour (kWh). And it’s claimed to be lower compared to tariff in Vietnam (Rp1,532 per kWh), Thailand (Rp1,597), the Philippines (Rp2,421), and Singapore (Rp2,863).

Meanwhile, the tariff for low-voltage medium business customers is set at Rp1,445 per kWh, lower than the Philippines (Rp1,636), Malaysia (Rp1,735), Vietnam (Rp1,943), and Singapore (Rp2,110).

The tariff for medium-voltage big business customers in Indonesia is Rp1,115 per kWh – also the cheapest in the region compared to Malaysia (Rp1,227), Thailand (Rp1,370), the Philippines (Rp1,603), Vietnam (Rp1,787), and Singapore (Rp2,063).

Pribadi explained that the tariff is specifically designated as a stimulus to improve national investment climate and invite more investors while the pandemic continues.

As for medium-voltage medium industry customers, the electricity tariff set by PLN is Rp1,115 per kWh, which is cheaper than tariff in Vietnam (Rp1,117), the Philippines (Rp1,567), and Singapore (Rp1,922). However, it’s higher compared to Malaysia (Rp1,060) and Thailand (Rp991).

Lastly, the tariff imposed to big industry customers is Rp997 per kWh, or lower than Vietnam (Rp1,060), the Philippines (Rp1,559), and Singapore (Rp1,863), but higher than Malaysia (Rp991) and Thailand (Rp990).