Young entrepreneurs back govt's energy reduction policy

Antara ,  Palembang   |  Sun, 07/06/2008 5:35 PM  |  National

The Indonesian Young Entrepreneurs Association (HIPMI) has expressed its support for a government policy to cut back on electricity usage and fuel oil consumption.

HIPMI chairman for energy affairs Erwin Aksa said the association understood the challenge Indonesia faced in reducing energy consumption.

"We support the government's program on energy cutbacks," Erwin was quoted by Antara as saying on the sidelines of a national dialogue on energy and food security opened by Vice President Jusuf Kalla in Palembang on Sunday.

Also involved in the dialogue were Vice Chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly Aksa Mahmud, State Enterprises Minister Sofyan Djalil, BRI Bank President Director Sofyan Basyir, Bukopin Bank president director Glenn Genardi and all HIPMI members.

Erwin, also chief executive officer of Bosawa Corporation, said with thousands of young business people from 33 provinces as its members, the association would be able to play an active role in supporting the energy program.

"Our members operating businesses in property, hotel, services and manufacturing will be able to stem excessive electricity usage," he said.

The HIPMI could also play a key role in a number of other government programs, including the conversion from kerosene to gas used as energy and from oil to coal used for power plants, he said.

Erwin said the food and energy crises were not restricted to Indonesia, but were rather world-wide phenomena.

"The trend has been for world food production to lower, while demand for food has continued to rise in tandem with the world's population explosion," he said.

He said the global price of crude oil, which was approaching US$150 per barrel, was exacerbating the economic conditions of developing and poor countries.

In the near future, he said, the government would issue a joint ministerial decree instructing all public, private and government agencies to involve themselves in the energy reduction program.(**)

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.