Redupnya Cahya Arun NGL di Aceh

PT Arun LGL pernah menjadi primadona APBN Indonesia ketika sedang berada dalam puncak produksi pada 1980-an. Saat itu, Indonesia menikmati melonjaknya harga gas dan meningkatnya produksi gas dari ladang Arun Field yang memiliki kandungan gas mencapai 17,1 triliun kaki kubik. Sayangnya, ketika itu belum ada Undang-Undang Nomor 11 Tahun 2006 sehingga masyarakat Aceh tidak kecipratan booming gas tersebut.

Perusahaan yang sahamnya dimiliki Pertamina (55 persen), ExxonMobil (30 persen), dan Jico Jepang (15 persen) itu berdiri sejak 16 Maret 1974. Sebagai perusahaan pencairan gas alam, tugas PT Arun memang hanya mencairkan gas sebelum diekspor ke Jepang dan Korea Selatan. Agenda rutin kami para jurnalis setiap akhir tahun adaah meliput pengapalan akhir PT Arun, apakah ke Jepang atau Korea Selatan. Kapten kapal tanker selalu hadir dalam seremonial itu. Saya yang ketika itu juga menjadi stringer Asahi Shimbun (koran terbitan Jepang), akan lebih nyaman bila tanker Jepang yang mendapat jatah pengapalan natural gas liquid (NGL) terakhir. Berita saya lebih mendapat tempat di Asahi Shimbun.

Di masa jayanya, Lhokseumawe dikenal dengan julukan Kota Petrodollar karena booming gas. Pada malam hari, kawasan di sekitar kilang PT Arun di Blang Pulo bersimbah cahaya. Dalam perjalanan dari Bireuen menuju Lhokseumawe, sekitar 1993, dalam bus dua penumpang yang baru saling kenal berbincang tentang kemegahan PT Arun. “Bapak jangan tidur dulu. Ini kita sedang melintasi kawasan industry. Rugi kalau tidak melihatnya,” ujar Bapak itu kepada rekannya yang ternyata baru saling kenal. Saat itu, bus baru melintasi PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda di Krueng Geukueh, Aceh Utara.

Begitulah PT Arun di masa jayanya.

Ketika masa pembangunan kilang PT Arun, 1974, yang dilakukan Bechtel Inc, banyak orang bangga jika bekerja di sana. Muncullah pantun;

"Dulu buah salak, sekarang buah apel. Dulu Abang Becak, sekarang Abang Bechtel."

Meski hanya sebagai sopir, bekerja di Bechtel sangat bergengsi. Saya yang generasi 1970-an, walau saat itu masih anak-anak, sering mendengar pantun tersebut dan melihat bagaimana bangganya orang bekerja di sana meski hanya sebagai sopir dan karyawan kontrak pula. Kawasan yang sebelumnya sepi, gelap, berubah menjadi ramai dan gemerlap dengan lampu. Orang-orang mulai akrab dengan berbagai merek mobil dan alat berat. Kehidupan masyarakat berubah. Moderenisasi dari berbagai bidang, baik positif maupun negatif, mulai masuk dan menjadi bagian dari kehidupan masyarakat Aceh.

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Hari Rabu 15 Oktober 2014 merupakan saat bersejarah. Setelah 36 tahun mencairkan gas alam, PT Arun berhenti beroperasi. Pengapalan pertama LNG pada 14 Oktober 1977 dan terakhir pada 15 Oktober 2014. Totalnya, PT Arun mengekspor gas alam cair sebanyak 4.269 kali ke Jepang dan Korea Selatan.

Ketika kuliah di Politeknik Negeri Unsyiah (sekarang Politeknik Negeri Lhokseumawe) pada 1993 – 1996, saya beberapa kali melakukan plant tour di PT Arun dan menyaksikan teknologi pencairan gas alam. Saat itu sudah muncul pertanyaan dari kalangan mahasiswa, mau diapakan kilang PT Arun yang dibangun dengan dana besar itu, setelah gas alam habis.
Kepala Humas PT Arun masa itu, Azhari Ali, mengatakan pemerintah sudah berpikir matang-matang bagaimana memanfaatkan kilang PT Arun setelah gas alam habis. “Percayalah, kilang PT Arun tidak akan menjadi besi tua,” tukas Azhari Ali tatkala itu.

Setelah menjadi wartawan, sejak akhir 1997, perbincangan mengenai masa pasca-gas sering mencuat ke permukaan. Poin dari wacana tersebut adalah, yang pertama, pemerintah Aceh jangan terbuai dengan penghasilan dari migas karena itu akan berakhir dan tidak dapat diperbaharui. Sehingga, pemerintah Aceh harus mengoptimalkan masa jaya migas dengan mengembangkan sector lain sebagai sumber pendapatan asli daerah (PAD).

Kedua, asset PT Arun termasuk kilangnya yan bernilai puluhan miliar rupiah, jangan sampai menjadi besi tua. Ketika Iqbal Hasan Saleh menjabat sebagai presiden direktur PT Arun ke-14 pada 2012, gagasan membangun Kilang Bahan Bakar Minyak (BBM) di Arun LNG sangat mengemuka. Dia memperjuangkan rencana itu sampai ke Pusat (Jakarta). Bahkan, sempat mempresentasikan manfaat kilang BBm Arun jika dibangun. Bukan saja Aceh yang untung, Indonesia juga.

Selama ini, BBM yang dibeli Indonesia disimpan di Singapura padahal negara itu tidak memiliki kekayaan minyak dan gas alam. Saya masih ingat malam itu, saat Ramadhan, Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, sampai geleng-geleng kepala mendengar kerugian yang diderita Indonesia dengan menyimpan migas di luar negeri. Presiden Yudhoyono juga berdecak kagum mendengar presentasi dari Iqbal Hasan Saleh, putra Aceh kelahiran Pidie.

Salah satu pertanyaan saya kepada Pak Iqbal adalah, ia begitu gencar memperjuangkan Kilang BBM di Aceh dengan melabrak kepentingan pejabat di Jakarta, apakah ia tidak takut dicopot dari jabatannya sebagai presiden direktur?

Ia menjawab, jabatan adalah amanah. Dia siap dicopot asal Kilang BBM benar-benar terwujud di Aceh. Beberapa bulan kemudian, Oktober 2013, Iqbal Hasan Saleh benar-benar dicopot dan digantikan dengan Gusti Aziz yang juga berasal dari Aceh (Selatan). Sampai Juli 2017 ini, agenda tentang pembangunan KIlang BBM sudah tidak terdengar lagi.

PT Arun memang sudah berakhir, sekarang nama perusahaan menjadi Perta Arun Gas atau PAG yang tidak lagi bertugas mencairkan gas alam, tetapi memastikan pasokan gas untuk kebutuhan industri lain, terutama industri pupuk PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda yang terletak tak jauh dari bekas kilang PT Arun. Sebagian karyawan PAG adalah mantan karyawan PT Arun. Tetapi rencana besar dengan Kilang BBM sepertinya berakhir seiring dengan menipisnya cadangan gas.

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PT Arun NGL refinery in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, when it is still in operation to liquefy natural gas before it is exported to Japan and South Korea. Photos by @ayijufridar.

Ada satu kalimat yang saya sukai dari Iqbal Hasan Saleh. Dia menyebutkan, segala upaya yang ia perjuangkan tersebut adalah ingin membuat Arun sabe meucahya atau membuat Arun selalu bersinar. Ini makna konotatif. Maksudnya, masyarakat Aceh selalu merasakan rahmat dari hadirnya Kilang BBM di Arun. Cahaya di sini dimaksudkan sebagai pencerahan dari berbagai bidang baik itu ekonomi, pendidikan, dan kesejahteraan sosial.

Ternyata, cahaya itu kini makin redup dan tinggal menunggu padam…

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Dark Arun NGL Light in Aceh

PT Arun LGL was once a mainsource of the Indonesian state budget while in the peak of production in the 1980s. At that time, Indonesia enjoyed a surge in gas prices and increased gas production from the Arun Field field which contained 17.1 trillion cubic feet of gas.

Unfortunately, at that time there was no Law Number 11 Year 2006 so that the people of Aceh are not sprayed by the gas boom.

The company whose shares are owned by Pertamina (55 percent), ExxonMobil (30 percent) and Jico Japan (15 percent) was established since March 16, 1974. As a natural gas liquefaction company, PT Arun's duties only liquefy the gas before it is exported to Japan and South Korea . Our regular agenda of journalists every end of year is covering PT Arun's final shipment, whether to Japan or South Korea.

The captain of the tanker was always present in the ceremonial. I was then a stringer of Asahi Shimbun (Japanese daily), it would be more comfortable if the Japanese tankers get the last shipment of natural gas liquid (NGL). My news has a place in Asahi Shimbun.

In its heyday, Lhokseumawe was known by the famousname of Petrodollar City because of the gas boom. At night, the area around the PT Arun refinery in Blang Pulo is light-filled. On the way from Bireuen to Lhokseumawe, around 1993, in a new two-seater bus they met each other talked about the grandeur of PT Arun. "Bapak do not sleep.This we are crossing the industrial area. Loss if you do not see it," said the a man to his colleagues who were new to each other. At that time, a new bus crossed PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda in Krueng Geukueh, North Aceh.

Such is PT Arun in its heyday.

During the construction of the PT Arun refinery, 1974, by Bechtel Inc., many people were proud to work there. The rhyme appears;

"It used to be the fruit of bark, now the apple. It used to be the Becak's brother, now Bechtel's brother."

Although only as a driver, working in Bechtel is very prestigious. I am a generation of the 1970s, although it was still a child, often hear the rhyme and see how proud people work there though only as a driver and contract employees as well. The previously deserted, darkened area, turned into a crowded and sparkling with lights. People are getting familiar with various brands of cars and heavy equipment. People's lives change. Moderenisasi from various fields, both positive and negative, began to enter and become part of the life of the people of Aceh.

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PT Arun NGL refinery in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, when it is still in operation to liquefy natural gas before it is exported to Japan and South Korea. Photos by @ayijufridar

Wednesday 15 October 2014 is a historic moment. After 36 years of natural gas liquefaction, PT Arun stopped operating. The first shipment of LNG on October 14, 1977 and last on October 15, 2014. In total, PT Arun exported 4.269 liquefied natural gas to Japan and South Korea.

While studying at the State Polytechnic of Unsyiah (now Lhokseumawe State Polytechnic) from 1993 to 1996, I made several plant tours in PT Arun and witnessed the technology of natural gas liquefaction. At that time the question has arisen from the students, want to do the PT Arun refinery built with large funds, after the natural gas runs out.

Head of Public Relations of PT Arun at that time, Azhari Ali, said the government has been thinking carefully how to use PT Arun refinery after the natural gas runs out."Believe me, PT Arun refinery will not be a scrap metal," Azhari Ali said at the time.

After becoming a journalist, since the end of 1997, talk about the post-gas period is often sticking to the surface. The point of the discourse is, firstly, the government of Aceh should not be lulled by the income from oil and gas because it will end and can not be renewed. Thus, the Aceh government must optimize the oil and gas booming by developing other sectors as a source of local revenue (PAD).

Second, the assets of PT Arun including the refinery yan worth tens of billions of rupiah, do not be a scrap metal. When Iqbal Hasan Saleh served as president of 14th PT Arun in 2012, the idea of building a Petroleum Refinery in Arun LNG was very prominent. He championed the plan to the Center (Jakarta). In fact, could present the benefits of the Aram BBM refinery if it is built. Not only Aceh is a profit, Indonesia too.

So far, Indonesia's purchased fuel is stored in Singapore when the country has no oil and natural gas wealth. I still remember that night, during Ramadan, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, to shake my head to hear the loss suffered by Indonesia by storing oil and gas abroad. President Yudhoyono also chuckled in amazement at the presentation of Iqbal Hasan Saleh, Acehnese son of Pidie.

One of my questions to Mr. Iqbal is that he is so aggressively fighting for the fuel refinery in Aceh by racking up the interests of officials in Jakarta, whether he is not afraid to be removed from his post as president director?

Iqbal Hasan Saleh, president of PT Arun NGL who served from 2012 to October 2013. Photo by @ayijufridar

He replied, the title is the trust. He is ready to be removed from BBM Refinery really materialized in Aceh. Several months later, October 2013, Iqbal Hasan Saleh was completely dismantled and replaced by Gusti Aziz who also came from Aceh (South). Until July 2017, the agenda about KIlang BBM development is no longer heard.

PT Arun is over, now the name of the company is Perta Arun Gas or PAG which is no longer in charge of liquefying natural gas, but ensuring gas supply for other industrial needs, especially fertilizer industry PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda located not far from former PT Arun refinery. Some PAG employees are former employees of PT Arun. But the big plan with the fuel refinery seems to end with the depletion of gas reserves.

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There is one sentence that I love from Iqbal Hasan Saleh. He mentioned, all the efforts he fought is to make Arun Sabe meucahya or make Arun always shine. This connotative meaning. That is, the people of Aceh always feel the grace of the presence of Refinery BBM in Arun. The light here is meant as an enlightenment from various fields be it economic, educational, and social welfare.

Apparently, the light is now increasingly dim and just waiting to die...

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Photos of the construction of PT Arun NGL refinery in 1974 involving many local people. Documentation source of PT Arun NGL.