Bahlil Confident that Indonesia's Fuel Imports from Neighbouring Countries Won't Be Disrupted, Here's Why

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Energy and Mineral Resources Minister (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia is optimistic that Indonesia’s imports of fuel products from neighbouring countries such as Singapore will not be disrupted. This follows rising global geopolitical tensions after the Hormuz Strait was closed in response to the Iran-Israel conflict that also involved the United States.

Bahlil believes Singapore as a refining hub should have alternative crude oil sources, so it should not rely solely on Middle East supply. ‘They must have several alternatives and that is their domain. But I have confidence that it will not be very different from Indonesia,’ he said at the Ministry of ESDM on Thursday (5/3/2026).

Bahlil noted that the global crude oil supply is not only from the Middle East. Some producer countries such as Africa, Angola, Brazil, and the United States also supply to refineries in Singapore. ‘Because crude sources are not only from the Middle East. Africa, Angola, Brazil. Some of them also source from Malaysia. Some can take from America,’ he said.

According to Bahlil in global oil trade practice, companies usually seek the most economical supply sources with the fastest distribution routes. ‘So I think, and in the Hormuz Strait 20.1 million barrels per day pass through. Our global consumption is not 20 million, hundreds of millions of barrels per day. So I think it’s just about how to cope with it,’ he said.