Indonesia: LNG and Foreign Investment

Indonesia's long-awaited Tangguh liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in the far eastern province of West Papua has begun operating. It is sending its first shipments of LNG to South Korea, and will soon send shipments to China. Indonesia has gone from being a major oil exporter to leaving the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to seeing its natural gas prospects expand. The question is whether the government — which received a strong mandate in recent elections — will be able to make reforms to bring in the foreign investment the energy sector needs.