“We hope that the new policies for Aceh will accelerate a normalization of ExxonMobil operation,” the Minister said. Answering a question about the date of operation of the gas field -- that had stopped its operation on March 8 – Susilo said that the government expected the company to resume its normal operation as soon as possible. However, Susilo said that the government and PT ExxonMobil had not mentioned a fixed date. “I just told them to run their operation the way they used to,” Susilo said. He expected the company to resume normal operation in a couple of months.
The Minister said that the state-oil-company Pertamina, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, the Indonesian Military (TNI), and the National Police were still trying to keep a secure supply of LNG in order to anticipate an export crisis if the company does not resume operations soon. “In order to keep a secure supply, the institutions [Pertamina, Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, the Indonesian Military, and the National Police] are still working hard. It is expected that the imposition of the new policy [Presidential Directive No. 4/2001] will accelerate the normalization of ExxonMobil,” he said.
Presidential Directive No. 4/2001 concerning security in Aceh was imposed March 11, 2001. This presidential directive comprises some instructions for Vice President Megawati, the 14 ministers, the TNI Chief, the Chief of the National Police, and the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) to handle the Aceh problem comprehensively and harmoniously.