Motorcycles Stall After Refuelling at Bekasi East Petrol Station as Operator Admits Water Contamination

Jakarta – A number of motorcyclists in Bekasi City have complained that their motorcycles stalled shortly after refuelling at a Pertamina petrol station (SPBU) in the Bekasi East area.

The petrol station operator acknowledged the presence of water contamination in the fuel and issued an apology to consumers.

The complaints gained attention on social media after a Threads account @pujiestia uploaded a video showing a motorcycle’s fuel tank being drained and releasing a white-coloured liquid suspected to be mixed with water.

“I bought petrol and got water at Pertamina Bulak Kapal Bekasi. The engine stalled as soon as I left the station. I thought my bike was broken but then realised lots of motorcycles were stalling around the petrol station. Went straight back and found a crowd at the pump. Apparently, this type of incident has happened more than once,” the account’s caption read.

Ragil Pambudi, the SPBU supervisor, confirmed the incident. He conveyed his apologies to all affected consumers.

“To sum up, the incident certainly did happen. We apologise to all consumers because there was indeed water contamination in the fuel,” Ragil told reporters on Sunday, 1 March 2026.

He emphasised that the SPBU has taken responsibility for the incident by attending to the vehicles of affected consumers.

Ragil added that the operator is still investigating to determine the exact cause of the water contamination in the fuel.

“We are currently conducting an on-site investigation to determine the sequence of events and the precise cause. Further detailed explanations will be provided by Pertamina,” Ragil said.

The SPBU has also opened a complaint centre for affected consumers.

“We have also opened a complaint centre, and so far we have assisted approximately 18 motorcycles and four cars,” he added.