May 28, 2026 | 02:32 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, has issued a new regulation that changes the procedures for exempting ethanol or ethyl alcohol tax to support energy transition. Previously, PT Pertamina Patra Niaga had requested the simplification of bioethanol tax exemption requirements.The new policy is outlined in Minister of Finance Regulation Number 34 of 2026, enacted on May 25, 2026. This regulation revises Minister of Finance Regulation Number 82 of 2024 concerning the Procedure for Tax Exemption."To support the government's program in the field of national energy resilience and realize the transition and utilization of clean energy through blending taxable goods in the form of ethyl alcohol with oil refinery products," reads a section of the reasoning in Regulation Number 34 cited on Thursday, May 28, 2026.The new regulation adds one paragraph to the previous Article 8. Through this provision, Purbaya expands the range of industries eligible for tax exemptions.The blending of oil refinery products with taxable goods in the form of ethyl alcohol is now recognized as a type of manufacturing or processing industry. Therefore, it can meet the administrative requirements for obtaining tax-exempt status. Because it falls under the category of taxable goods, such as alcoholic beverages, ethanol is subject to strict regulations. However, because ethanol is needed as a fuel blend, such as for bioethanol, the government is relaxing its rules specifically for this industry.Prior to debottlenecking session last February, Purbaya responded to PT Pertamina Patra Niaga's complaint regarding permit constraints. Pertamina proposed a revision to Minister of Finance Regulation Number 82 of 2024 and Regulation of the Director General of Customs and Excise Number PER 13/BC/2024 to simplify the requirements for bioethanol tax exemption.Vice President of PT Pertamina, Oki Muraza, stated that the requirements for an Industrial Business License (IUI) were the main obstacle to applying for a bioethanol tax exemption. He mentioned that the licensing process, which includes an Environmental Impact Analysis (Amdal), could take up to three years for each location.Additionally, the government will adopt the new Standard Classification of Indonesian Business Fields (KBLI) number 19206, which covers blending oil refinery products with biofuel (bioethanol) in the processing industry category."However, of course, we need several regulatory adjustments or changes from the Minister of Finance Regulation. This will certainly reduce the current single permit system that we are implementing," said Oki as quoted from ANTARA.Read: Indonesia to Mandate 5% Ethanol-Blended Gasoline From July 2026Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News
