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State oil and gas company PT Pertamina will import 18,000
metric tons of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in April to overcome a
lack of supplies in the domestic market, an official says.
Pertamina Deputy Head of Trading and Marketing Hanung Budya said
Wednesday Pertamina was forced to import the LPG because the
maintenance of one of its refineries in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan,
was causing delays in distribution.
Pertamina has imported some 12,600 metric tons of LPG this month.
Last year, Pertamina imported around 5.5 million metric tons of LPG
because it could only supply one million metric tons of an estimated
annual demand of 6.5 million metric tons.
In connection with recent LPG shortages in some parts of the country,
Hanung said Pertamina would add 10,000 metric tons to the storage
capacity of its Indramayu refinery in West Java this August.
The existing storage capacity of 25,000 metric tons is only capable of
holding a six-month supply of LPG. Average demand stands at around
3,500 metric tons a day.
"We need to increase the capacity to 50,000 metric tons in order to
secure the supply for 14 days," he said.
The company is also planning to rent semi-refrigerator tankers -- which
can convert gas into a pressurized form -- with a capacity of 8,000
metric tons each, to deliver LPG directly to areas on Java from its
production sites.
Supply for Jakarta, he added, would be increased by 30 percent this
month to 1,500 metric tons a day, from the previous 1,100 metric tons.
Supplies for Bandung will be upped by 25 percent to 350 metric tons
from 280 metric tons.
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