Pertamina sees rise in fuel consumption this year
Pertamina sees rise in fuel consumption this year
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
State-owned oil and gas firm Pertamina said on Thursday it
expected fuel consumption for this year to reach between 55
million kiloliters and 57 million kiloliters, higher than the
target of 52.77 million kiloliters under the 2002 state budget.
Pertamina downstream director Muchsin Bahar said fuel
consumption between January and April this year had reached 18.3
million kiloliters, higher than the state budget target of 17.56
million kiloliters for the period.
"Meanwhile, according to a member of the House of
Representatives, some areas, including Riau, are now experiencing
a fuel shortage,"
"Thus, fuel consumption will increase to around that figure
(55-57 million kiloliters)," he told reporters on the sidelines
of a hearing with the House of Representatives.
He said Pertamina and the government were still discussing who
would cover the expenses for the purchase of the extra fuel.
"If we (Pertamina) must pay for the extra fuel, our financial
performance will weaken," Muchsin warned.
According to him, Pertamina spends about Rp 1 trillion to
produce or import one million kiloliters of fuel. Thus, Pertamina
might have to provide an extra Rp 4.3 trillion to cover fuel
supplies this year.
Under the state budget, Pertamina is allowed to distribute up
to 52.77 million kiloliters of fuel this year for which the
government has allocated a total subsidy of Rp 30.37 trillion
(US$3.06 billion).
Any extra fuel demand will raise the fuel subsidy, thus
affecting the state budget. Otherwise, Pertamina has to use its
own fund to pay for the extra fuel.
Last year, fuel consumption reached 54.6 million kiloliters,
exceeding the state budget target of 52.7 million kiloliters.
However, the government and the House later agreed to raise
the fuel subsidy, thus Pertamina did not have to shoulder a new
financial burden that year.
Pertamina still imports 15 percent of the country's fuel needs
due to the limited capacity of its refineries.
Meanwhile, legislator M. Husni Thamrin of the Golkar faction
said the House would not decide whether to raise fuel subsidy
until it received the results of the independent survey by state-
owned Surveyor Indonesia on the country's fuel consumption.
"We have yet to receive the results of the survey. It's still
in the government's hands," he said.
At the hearing, Pertamina president Baihaki Hakim said he
expected next year's fuel consumption to reach 61.8 million
kiloliters and fuel subsidy to be set at Rp 21.05 trillion.
According to him, the country's oil output for next year would
stay at 1.3 million barrels per day, from which the government
would receive about Rp 44 trillion.
Combined with revenue from gas, which is projected at Rp 25
trillion next year, the government would collect a total of Rp 69
trillion from the oil and gas sector, Baihaki said, adding that
the calculation was based on an exchange rate of Rp 9,500 per
U.S. dollar and a crude price of $19 per barrel.