Council to summon Pertamina over diluted gasoline

Council to summon Pertamina over diluted gasoline

JAKARTA (JP): The City Council will summon representatives of
state oil and gas company Pertamina following complaints of
diluted gasoline being sold by a number of gas stations in the
capital, a councillor said on Wednesday.

Deputy council speaker Muhammad Suwardi said Pertamina, which
issues business licenses to gas stations, should be able to take
action against them.

"If Pertamina cannot control gas stations, then it would be
better for the company to stop issuing licenses for new
stations," he said.

He also said Pertamina should send letters to all gas stations
in the capital warning them against diluting fuel.

"Pertamina has the authority to revoke the licenses of gas
stations that are proven to sell diluted gasoline," he added.

Contacted separately, the Indonesian Consumers Foundation
(YLKI) confirmed that it had received many reports of diluted
gasoline, which has been proven to damage a vehicle's engine.

"Today (Wednesday) for example, I received two calls from
residents reporting that they'd just found out that the gasoline
they bought was mixed with water," Agus Pambagio, deputy chairman
of the foundation, said.

One of complainants said he bought the gasoline at a gas
station on Jl. Melawai in South Jakarta.

Agus said he had earlier received complaints about diluted
gasoline sold at gas stations on Jl. Kapten Tendean in South
Jakarta, Jl. Cempaka Putih in Central Jakarta and three others in
East Jakarta: on Jl. Otto Iskandardinata and in Cimanggis and
Cibubur.

The stations were reported for selling gasoline which had been
mixed with either kerosene or water, he added.

He said many residents not only complained about being sold
diluted premium gasoline, but also premix and Super TT (unleaded
gasoline).

Agus urged the public to be more critical and encouraged
people to protest directly to Pertamina.

"We (YLKI) will (only) support them by giving them data, since
we have already have many other problems waiting for attention,"
he said.

There is no other way to solve this case but through legal
measures, because this could be categorized as a crime, he added.

Official data show that the capital requires at least 8,000
kiloliters of leaded gasoline every day, with premium accounting
for 97 percent of sales. (04)