BP Indonesia resumes gas supply to state power firm

JAKARTA, July 25 (Reuters) - BP Indonesia, a unit of oil major BP (BP.L), has resumed gas supplies from its offshore West Java field to the state power firm after maintenance, the country's energy watchdog said on Friday.

BP shut its gas field on July 11, halting gas supplies to two power plants operated by Indonesia's state power provider PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN).

PLN, whose network is already badly strained, has been forced to impose rotating black outs in some parts of Java island.

"Since July 24, gas supply from BP to its customers has returned to normal as the maintenance work ended," Amir Hamzah, a spokesman for the energy watchdog, known as BPMIGAS, said in statement.

He did not say whether the resumption of gas supplies would mean an end to the scheduled series of power black outs.

Hamzah said supplies to PLN has reached 150 billion British thermal unit per day of natural gas and supply to state-owned gas firm, PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN) (PGAS.JK), had also resumed at 60 billion BTU per day.

PLN had to use fuel oil and diesel oil at its 1,000-megawatt (MW) Tanjung Priok power station and 750-MW Muara Karang plant, near Jakarta, when the gas supply was stopped in July 11.

PLN, the monopoly power supplier for Indonesia, has 24,000 MW of generating capacity but daily output is well below capacity due to old and inefficient plants.

Indonesia is trying to tap alternative sources of energy to meet rising power demand and cut consumption of expensive crude oil as its own reserves dwindle.

(Reporting by Muklis Ali; Editing by Ed Davies)