Indonesia not to import fuel in March
Indonesia not to import fuel in March
SINGAPORE (Reuters): Indonesia will not import any fuel oil
for March arrival after failing to buy any cargoes for February,
industry sources said on Thursday.
"Indonesia is not buying any fuel oil March. In February it
was also zero," one regular supplier to Indonesia said.
Indonesia normally imports an average of about 200,000 tons,
or about 1.3 million barrels, of fuel oil a month but this was
halved to 100,000 tons in January as the country grappled with
its worst economic crisis in decades.
Traders had initially expected state-owned Pertamina to import
around 100,000 tons in February but this was canceled as the
economic troubles worsened.
Indonesia's 1997 fuel oil imports peaked in October and
November, when imports soared to 400,000 tonnes, they said.
Pertamina had said on Tuesday that the size of imports of fuel
products would depend on domestic demand and output from local
refineries.
Indonesia had raised its refining capacity by about 100,000
barrel per day (bpd) last year to 1.05 million bpd and this,
traders said, has allowed the country to cutback its imports.
"At the moment we are reducing imports of fuel products
because domestic demand is less," Pertamina general affairs
director Hadi Daryono said on Tuesday.
Indonesia had also deferred its February diesel imports and is
not expected to buy any diesel on a spot basis in March, traders
said.
Meanwhile traders in London said Kuwait sold to European
customers some of the term contract middle distillates turned
back last week by Indonesia.
They said Wednesday Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) in February
had exported some three cargoes of gas oil and two cargoes of jet
to European buyers, higher than its usual exports.
The extra volumes were those previously lined up for
Indonesia, they said.
The cargoes were sold on a free-on-board Kuwait basis. KPC in
Europe had no immediate comment.
Traders said a further Kuwait gas oil cargo earmarked for
Indonesia had been diverted to Nepal.