Middle East Conflict: Bahlil to Increase BBM Storage Capacity to 90 Days
Middle East Conflict: Bahlil to Increase BBM Storage Capacity to 90 Days
Jakarta, VIVA – The Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Bahlil Lahadalia, said he would increase the capacity of BBM storage from the current 25–26 days to 90 days, or three months. “In fact, our energy resilience, our storage, is maximum at around 25–26 days, not more than that,” Bahlil said at the Press Conference on the Latest Developments in the Middle East and Implications for the ESDM Sector, held at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources in Jakarta on Tuesday.
The statement responds to a comparison between Indonesia’s energy resilience and Japan, where Indonesia’s BBM stock can last less than 30 days, while Japan has BBM stock for 254 days ahead. The imbalance is due to Indonesia’s limited BBM storage. “Now, if we import that much (as Japan), where will we put (BBM)? That is our problem,” he said.
Therefore, according to Bahlil, the government is working to build storage with a capacity of 90 days, i.e., three months, to align with international standards. Feasibility studies regarding the construction of the storage are currently ongoing. Bahlil targets storage to begin construction in 2026, and plans call for building it in Sumatera.
Regarding energy resilience at present, Bahlil said that stocks of crude oil, BBM, and LPG are, on average, above the government’s minimum national resilience standard. The minimum standard set by the Indonesian government is 23 days.
“So, regarding preparations for Eid al-Fitr and the fasting month, alhamdulillah I can say that the stocks of BBM, crude, LPG, are all on average above the national minimum standard,” he said.
Indonesia’s energy resilience has drawn public attention amid the US-Israel-Iran conflicts.
On Saturday, 28 February, the US and Israel launched a series of strikes on several targets in Iran, including Tehran. Reports say the strikes caused damage and civilian casualties. Iran retaliated by launching missile strikes on Israeli territories and US military facilities in the region.
On Sunday, 1 March, US President Donald Trump claimed that the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in a joint US-Israel attack. Iran’s state television confirmed the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a result of the attack.