Report to Prabowo: Bahlil Mentions Oil Import Incident from Singapore

Jakarta — The Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia reported an incident of detained cargo ships carrying oil imports from Singapore during a full cabinet meeting at the State Palace with President Prabowo Subianto on Friday, 13 March 2026.

Bahlil described the incident as a serious concern for the government in ensuring the security of national energy supply, particularly ahead of the 2026 Eid al-Fitr holiday period.

He explained that the incident involved two oil cargo ships that had been purchased by PT Pertamina (Persero) through intermediaries or traders.

He revealed that both vessels were suddenly ordered to reverse course by the sellers, even though they had already entered Indonesian territorial waters.

“Three or four days ago we purchased oil from Singapore, it had departed, offered by Pertamina through traders, it had already entered Indonesian waters, and then they ordered two cargoes to return,” Bahlil said during the cabinet meeting.

According to him, this occurred due to intense competition in the current global energy market, which has caused normal trading rules to be disregarded.

Limited supply amid high demand has made intermediaries inclined to redirect goods to other buyers willing to offer higher prices.

“So now in the economy, for oil matters, the normal rules no longer apply. Whoever has the money buys it because goods are scarce,” he added.

As a follow-up, the government together with Pertamina immediately took firm action by filing official complaints and threatening legal action.

Thanks to the firmness, which also reflected the President’s direction, the sellers eventually relented and agreed to return both oil cargoes to Indonesia.

“For those two ships, we coordinated with Pertamina and filed complaints, and by 18 March the two cargoes will be returned, sir. If not, we will sue,” he concluded.