Pertamax Price Hike: Electric Motorcycle Industry Boss Gives Unexpected Response
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The government’s policy of raising the price of Pertamax fuel from Rp12,300 to Rp16,300 per litre has drawn attention from various quarters. Chairman of the Indonesian Electric Motorcycle Industry Association (Aismoli), Budi Setiyadi, believes the fuel price hike could prompt the public to consider switching to electric vehicles.
According to him, the government also faces significant challenges in maintaining the sustainability of the energy subsidy budget. Therefore, the change in fuel prices is seen as an indicator that public energy consumption patterns must gradually transform.
“Yes, it serves as momentum and also a signal to the public that the government is increasingly burdened by subsidies, right? Or that the potential for efficiency from this fuel is being increasingly considered by the government,” Budi told CNBC Indonesia on Thursday (11/6/2026).
Discussions regarding the impact of the fuel price increase on electric vehicle adoption have reportedly been taking place among industry players. Various promotional strategies and public education campaigns are being prepared to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles.
“I think hopefully the public will become more aware that fuel scarcity and increasingly high fuel prices mean it is time to start thinking about finding more efficient vehicles, which brings us back to electric motorcycles,” he said.
On the other hand, the electric vehicle industry is still awaiting certainty on a number of government policies previously planned to encourage public purchases of electric vehicles. Certainty over incentives will be a crucial factor determining the pace of national electric vehicle market growth in the coming months.
“So now we just need to devise a strategy, perhaps we need to do massive joint marketing, or on the other hand, if things are made more difficult, we might look for opportunities to voice to the public: ‘If you find this burdensome, I have a more efficient option, the electric motorcycle’,” Budi stated.
He added that the combination of rising fuel prices and supportive government policies could potentially become a strong driver for accelerating the use of electric motorcycles in Indonesia.
“If there is later certainty regarding purchase assistance, I think I was initially only targeting 100,000 units. If there is purchase assistance and then fuel prices rise, I would dare to set a higher target than that,” he concluded.