Subsidised Fuel 'Pertalite' Often Scarce in Klungkung; Locals Blame 'Ghost Tanks'
The scarcity of subsidised Pertalite fuel at a number of service stations (SPBU) in Klungkung Regency, Bali, has once again drawn the ire of residents. The outages are reportedly frequent during certain hours, even though stock is considered to be readily available. Residents suspect an unusual distribution pattern behind the phenomenon.
In the community, this situation has long been referred to as ‘ghost tanks’. However, SPBU management denies any special practice, stating that the shortages occur due to operational factors, ranging from staff rest periods to the recharging of Electronic Data Capture devices.
Based on observations, three SPBUs in the Klungkung and Dawan sub-districts experienced outages at specific hours in recent days. These include SPBU Besang on Jalan Ngurah Rai, Central Semarapura, Klungkung District; SPBU Siku on Jalan Rama, Semarapura Kangin; and SPBU Batu Tabih on Jalan Raya Batu Tabih, Takmung Village, Banjarangkan District.
At SPBU Besang, outages could occur at different times, from morning to afternoon and evening. An information board stating ‘sorry, fuel has not arrived’ was seen displayed when fuel was unavailable. A similar situation also occurred at the other two stations.
A local resident, Kadek Suardana, who works as an online motorcycle taxi driver, expressed puzzlement over the conditions. According to him, Pertalite is not truly depleted but is frequently not distributed to the general public at specific times. He said the community has long known this phenomenon by the term ‘ghost tank’.
‘We are often defeated by that ghost tank. It is already an open secret. If that goes in, that is it, we won’t get any share,’ Suardana explained.
He noted that the situation forces some residents to turn to retailers or Pertashops. However, he chooses to buy Pertamax when Pertalite is unavailable, even though he must dig deeper into his pocket. He mentioned the price of Pertamax has now risen from Rp 12,300 per litre to Rp 16,250 per litre.
Suardana also assessed that the practice of purchasing fuel repeatedly using motorcycles makes distribution difficult to supervise. ‘A car is clearly visible. This one can go back and forth many times. Many people already know about this. We can compare it with SPBUs that firmly reject retailers, they are definitely smooth, like the one in Negari. Here, only the prohibition sign is clearly displayed,’ he said.
Responding to the allegations, administrative officer Wayan Alit of SPBU Besang, owned by CV Dharma Migas Sejahtera, insisted there is no orchestrated arrangement in fuel distribution. He stated that outages occur due to technical operational factors.
‘The stock availability here is very smooth. If it is empty, sometimes it is during staff rest hours, and the EDC also needs to be rested because it is hot and needs to recharge. So indeed we never run out of fuel,’ Alit said.
According to him, the EDC recharging process takes about 15 to 30 minutes, so the SPBU appears temporarily non-operational. ‘So the emptiness is not deliberate. It is because the EDC battery runs out. It needs to be charged first,’ he clarified.
He also assured that service remains normal despite the increase in non-subsidised fuel prices, and no long queues have formed at the station yet. ‘The price increase starts today. So it is still smooth. There are still Pertamax buyers. I don’t know, maybe some don’t yet know the price has gone up,’ he added.
Meanwhile, the Head of Trade at the Klungkung Cooperative, SME, Industry and Trade Office, I Dewa Gede Agung Julia Pramana, stated that his office has no authority over the supervision of fuel distribution. According to him, the local government’s role is limited to stock monitoring. ‘It is only limited to monitoring stock. We are afraid of making a wrong comment, because we don’t have the authority there,’ he explained.