Batam's ferry operators back on job

Fadli, The Jakarta Post/Batam

Some 100 ferries operating in the Riau Islands resumed operations on Friday after being halted by a strike a day earlier.

The ferries resumed services after state oil and gas company PT Pertamina bowed to ferry operators' demand that they be allowed to buy subsidized fuel at Pertamina's depot near the Sekupang and Telago Punggur ports on Batam.

Pertamina had earlier told the ferry operators to purchase fuel at Sambu island, several kilometers from Batam island, at unsubsidized prices. The ferry operators refused because of the distance to Sambu and the price of the fuel, said Asmadi, the chairman of the People's Sailing Association and the coordinator of the Commercial Sailing Association at Sekupang port.

He said that under the new deal, ferry operators could buy diesel fuel at the subsidized price of Rp 4,250 a liter. Unsubsidized diesel fuel costs Rp 6,000 a liter.

Purchasing the fuel at the Pertamina depot on Batam will also be much more convenient for the ferry operators because they will not have to obtain delivery orders before getting the fuel.

"The procedure is much more complicated if we buy fuel from Pertamina on Sambu island," said Asmadi.

As the ferries resumed their operations, traffic at the Sekupang and Telago Punggur ports returned to normal. The ports were busy on Friday as people traveled between Batam and the surrounding islands.

A spokesman for Pertamina in Batam, Sri Sudarso, said the company bowed to the ferry operators' demand in order to help traffic at the ports return to normal.

The spokesman also said the company had asked the Batam Transportation Office to oversee the fuel purchases in order to prevent any fuel hoarding.

Demand for diesel fuel in Batam reaches about 800 tons a month.