With better services, high grade fuels
\nPertamina ready to enter free competition<\/p>\n
A new dawn is coming out at the horizon for the downstream oil
\nsector in the country. An era of competition, where national and
\nmultinational companies race to bring the best services and
\nprices for motorists, households, and industries alike, is
\nalready starting.<\/p>\n
In an attempt to open the market in line with global trend
\naround the world, the government has regulated, with the
\nintroduction of Law No. 22\/2001 on oil and gas, that starting
\nNovember this year, state oil and gas firm Pertamina will no
\nlonger hold monopoly in the distribution of fuel throughout the
\nvast archipelago.<\/p>\n
Pertamina's exclusive rights has been extended until Dec. 31.
\nbut it is a matter of weeks that the free competition will start.
\nFor customers, it means beginning Jan.1, they will see logos
\nother than the blue-red-and green 'P' of Pertamina -- the state
\nenterprise's new icon.<\/p>\n
They will also have more selections to buy petroleum-based
\nfuel, for example from Royal Dutch Shell Plc. Despite having a
\nbig head start from the competitors, Pertamina wastes no time in
\npreparing for the newfound competitive environment, taking
\nnumerous measures to ensure that customers get even better
\nservices from the company.<\/p>\n
\"We have to be focused on the customers, not on the
\ncompetition,\" Achmad Faisal, Pertamina's acting deputy for
\ntrading and marketing, said recently. \"If we care for the
\ncustomers, they will still use Pertamina's products,\" he said
\nconfidently.<\/p>\n
It will be some time yet before the competition will really
\nkick in. Shell has opened its first outlet in Lippo Karawaci in
\nTangerang, west of Jakarta, selling unsubsidized high-octane
\npremium gasoline, with the second station in South Jakarta
\nalready nearing completion.<\/p>\n
Unsubsidized fuel, however, makes up only 5 percent of the
\ntotal distributed in the country. The bulk of the business lays
\nin selling subsidized fuel of premium gasoline, diesel fuel, and
\nkerosene, which this year is expected to reach 59.6 million
\nkiloliter (kl).<\/p>\n
As the government has ruled that any company wishing to
\nparticipate in the tender to distribute subsidized fuel must have
\npump stations outside densely-populated Java, Pertamina will most
\nlikely be given the responsibility to ensure that all citizens be
\nserved for another year.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, Pertamina has already made preparations, for
\nexample by simplifying the procedures needed to build gasoline
\nstations.<\/p>\n
Potential investors need only to log onto Pertamina's website
\n-- www.pertamina.com\/spbu -- to fill in the applications, which
\nwill be reviewed immediately. Contracts can be signed within as
\nsoon as 15 days, should they meet all the requirements, Faisal
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"We have completely transformed the system,\" said Faisal. Pump
\nstations will be connected online and fuel can be requested
\nelectronically, slashing precious time and paper works.<\/p>\n
\"Pump stations' management only need to sit and watch
\neverything being taken care of for them,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
In the franchise system, new pump stations, to be classified
\ninto five categories based on the estimated daily offtake, will
\npay a royalty per five years, which will be returned in the form
\nof trainings, monitoring, marketing, and uniforms. \"We will also
\nhelp them with the management of the station,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
In an attempt to minimize fuel theft -- a major problem for
\nmany gasoline station owners -- Pertamina will also take over the
\nmanagement of the transportation of the goods. \"We will guarantee
\nthat the loss remains within the tolerable limits,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
Pertamina owns some 40 units of the 3,157 pump stations
\noperating across the archipelago.<\/p>\n
The business of pump stations is booming. The stations, which
\ntake 4 percent off the subsidized prices as sales margin, are
\nenjoying higher revenues after the government hiked fuel prices
\nby an average of 126 percent in October.<\/p>\n
With the opening of the market, however, Pertamina will have
\nthe power to determine the sales margins. \"Stations that offer
\nbetter services will get a higher margin and vice versa,\" said
\nFaisal. \"It'll be an incentive for stations' owners to improve
\ntheir services,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Services of the bigger pump stations will also include air-
\nfilling for tires and window washing. These additional benefits,
\nhowever, will depend on the amount of cars and motorcycles
\nstanding in line at any given moment, as Pertamina does not want
\nthat the primary service of filling out gasoline be hindered.<\/p>\n
\"I believe that with competitive prices, correct metering and
\ngood services, Pertamina will remain as the company of choice for
\nour customers,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
Another front in which Pertamina is already making innovative
\nmoves is with the industrial users. Since November, the state
\nfirm PT Pertamina is offering its own discounts of between 1
\npercent and 4 percent for oil-based fuels sold to industry,
\ndepending on the consumer's monthly usage.<\/p>\n
\"We have signed contracts with 38 industrial customers last
\nmonth to supply fuel for one year with the discounts,\" said
\nFaisal. \"With the contracts, the supply and quality of the fuel
\nwill be thoroughly guaranteed.\"<\/p>\n
To attract consumers, Pertamina will also offer other
\nservices. The company will deliver fuel to the customer's front
\ndoor instead of having them come and buy fuel at the depots. \"If
\nPertamina handles the transportation, we can ensure that the loss
\nis tolerable,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
Another option that may become available in the near future is
\nfor industries to order special types of fuel for their needs.
\n\"We are studying the possibility to customize fuel compositions
\nfor specific customers,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
As the fuel business is expected to expand significantly,
\nPertamina has made plans to buy 32 new crude and oil-product
\ntankers in the next three years. The firm is rejuvenating its
\nfleet to meet rising shipment volumes and replace old vessels.<\/p>\n
At present, Pertamina operates a fleet of 33 tankers to
\ndeliver fuel and crude across the islands in the country.<\/p>\n
\"I am confident that Pertamina can come ahead of the
\ncompetition,\" said Faisal.<\/p>\n
\"And when Pertamina is strong, the country and its citizens
\nget the benefits, since all of the profit we garner will be
\nreturned to the state,\" he added.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/with-better-services-high-grade-fuels-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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