Jakarta. Indonesian ceramic producers are calling for a domestic market obligation, or DMO, on natural gas as the industry grapples with supplies.

A DMO policy requires natural gas companies to sell a pre-determined share of their output to the domestic market to ensure national supply. This way, not all outputs are going to exports. The Indonesian Ceramic Industry Association (Asaki) said that the DMO was necessary to make sure that ceramics could still contribute to the national economy. 

Asaki chairman Edy Suyanto said that the sector was now facing multiple challenges, ranging from natural gas supply disruptions, energy price hikes, and increasing import pressure. This combination of hurdles had weakened the ceramics industry operations.

He noted that the sector's production utilization rate in the first quarter of 2026 was in the range of 70-72%, falling short of the 80 percent utilization target.

"This gas supply disruption has a direct impact on factory operations and industrial productivity," Edy was quoted as saying by the state news agency Antara.

“We should prioritize our natural gas for domestic industrial needs. They have a significant multiplier effect. It creates jobs and encourages new investments,” Edy said.

The Industry Ministry data showed that the installed production capacity of the national ceramics industry has now reached 650 million square meters per year. Their production utilization rate is estimated to reach 73 percent by 2025, and employing 150,000 workers.

From the first to third quarters of 2025, the non-oil and gas processing industry grew by 5.17% and contributed 17.27% to the national gross domestic product. In terms of trade, IPNM contributed 80.27% to total national exports and employed up to 20.26 million people. Indonesia also remains upbeat that the country can be in the top 4 ceramics producers.

The Central Statistics Agency reported that Indonesia’s natural gas exports totaled $7.35 billion throughout 2025.