BPH Migas ensures priority for subsidised fuel needs in West Muna

West Muna, Southeast Sulawesi — The Downstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BPH Migas) has ensured that the demand for subsidised fuel in West Muna, Southeast Sulawesi, will be prioritised through the strengthening of energy distribution to support local community activities and the regional economy.

The Head of BPH Migunas, Wahyudi Anas, stated that West Muna is an area requiring government support to meet fuel needs through synergy with the Directorate General of Oil and Gas and Pertamina.

“In our future evaluation, alongside the Regent of West Muna (La Ode Darwin) and the Director General of Oil and Gas (Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Laode Sulaeman), we will examine the geography of West Muna to identify where strengthening, increased distribution, or new petrol stations are needed to improve accessibility for the community,” said Wahyudi in West Muna on Saturday.

BPH Migas, together with the Directorate General of Oil and Gas of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Pertamina Patra Niaga, and the West Muna Regency Government, held a meeting to discuss the demand for subsidised fuel in the area.

According to Wahyudi, global geopolitical dynamics and energy price disparities make the presence of state-compensated subsidised fuel increasingly vital to maintaining economic activities, including in West Muna.

“We will later detail exactly which areas and which communities are not yet being served by the state-compensated subsidised fuel,” he added.

The actual fuel requirements in West Muna include Pertalite, diesel for fishermen, water transport, water pumps, land transport, and kerosene, which is still required by some residents.

Consequently, he requested Pertamina Patra Niaga to accelerate the realisation of this year’s fuel allocation and ensure that West Muna receives special attention if distribution adjustments are required towards the end of the year.

BPH Migas is also exploring the possibility of adding more distribution points through coordination with Pertamina Patra Niaga to reduce fuel queues in the region.

Furthermore, BPH Migas has invited the local government and regional leadership (Forkopimda) to strengthen distribution oversight to ensure that subsidised fuel reaches the entitled members of the community in accordance with regulations.

Wahyudi explained that fuel subsidies and compensation represent significant government support, and therefore their use must be protected through shared supervision, evaluation, and more orderly distribution.

Distribution evaluations will be carried out gradually with the support of Pertamina Patra Niaga as the distributor to ensure continuous improvements in energy services to the public.

BPH Migas is also preparing a special distribution concept for the island areas of West Muna to prevent the illegal sale of subsidised fuel and to ensure that prices and volumes remain affordable.

“I am very grateful to the Director General of Oil and Gas, the Head of BPH Migas, and Pertamina for responding quickly to the grievances of the West Muna community. This is a truly progressive step,” said the Regent.

He noted that the collaboration between BPH Migas, the Directorate General of Oil and Gas, Pertamina Patra Niaga, and the West Muna Regency Government is capable of delivering a more equitable, targeted, and sustainable subsidised fuel distribution system.

“It is our hope for the people of West Muna that we will conduct mapping regarding needs and whether additional petrol stations are required; we will discuss this further,” added Darwin.

“We will hold meetings to decide what needs to be added and whether the current quota is sufficient or needs increasing; we will follow up on this within the next one to two weeks,” Darwin added.

During the meeting, the local government reported to BPH Migas, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, and Pertamina Patra Niaga regarding the discrepancy between fuel demand and supply in the region.

The local government stated that the demand for Pertalite reaches approximately 14 million litres per year, yet the supply received is only over 2 million litres. A similar situation exists for subsidised diesel, with a demand of around 17 million litres per year against a supply of just over 2 million litres. Meanwhile, the demand for kerosene is approximately 8 million litres per year, but only about 2 million litres are supplied.