Queues for Pertalite Ubiquitous

Pertalite has suddenly become the choice of motorists following an increase in Pertamax prices by around Rp 3,500 per liter. State oil and gas company PT Pertamina has guaranteed a secure national stock of Pertalite.

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

Yabaniadama, truck driver fell asleep under his truck while waiting in line to get diesel at the Rest Area KM 754 gas station on the Surabaya-Gempol toll road, Sidoarjo Regency, East Java, Tuesday (5/4/2022). Many truck drivers admit to having diesel problems in the last five days.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The Rp 3,500 per liter increase in Pertamax has prompted more motorists to switch to the cheaper brand of Pertalite. Lines of vehicles for Pertalite were seen at many filling stations in several areas. Some queued for biodiesel, which also highlighted the country’s palm oil-related problem.

Despite Pertamina’s guarantee that the stock of Pertalite is secure for the next 17 days, the recent surge in demand has caused concerns in many circles about an unavoidable scarcity of Pertalite.

Meanwhile, the global oil prices rose again on Tuesday (5/4/2022), triggered by fears about global oil supply.

Eduardus Danar, manager of a filling station at Karang Kidul in Semarang, Central Java, reported on Tuesday daily sales of Pertalite amounting to at least 20 kiloliters, compared with 16-17 kiloliters per day in normal times.

This increase in Pertalite sales was evident after the Pertamax price went up from Rp 9,000 to Rp 12,750 per liter as of April 1. With Pertalite remaining at Rp 7,650, Pertamax sales went down.

“Pertamax sales at our gas station used to be 7-8 kiloliters per day. After the price increase, Pertamax sales have decreased to around 3 kiloliters per day,” Eduardus said.

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The surging demand for Pertalite caused lines of vehicles in many places, although they were not as long as those for biodiesel when it ran short last week.

However, at some gas stations in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, lines of vehicles snaked from morning to noon on Tuesday. At the Tapak Kuda gas station dozens of vehicles lined up for 50 meters, as well as at the Saranani, Ahmad Yani and other gas stations.

Ridwan, 40, one of the customers, said long waiting lines had deterred him from joining the queue for three days before giving in. "I have had no choice but to join the line. Where else do you want to be [without queuing]?” said the employee of a private company.

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

Several motorcycle rider fills Pertalite type of fuel at a gas station in Yogyakarta, Tuesday (5/4/2022). The queue for buyers of Pertalite fuel at a number of gas stations in Yogyakarta continues normally.

While lines of vehicles at gas stations were also common in Banda Aceh, Aceh, Pertamax purchasers, according to Nahrawi Noerdin, the owner of the Lamsayeun gas station, were dominated by those with four-wheeled vehicles. They were not allowed to buy Pertalite. Also in the queue for Pertamax were retail resellers who came with jerry cans.

The Pertamax price hike forced fisherman Rema, 30, in West Sumatra to switch from Pertamax to Pertalite for the past two days. He was among those queueing for Pertalite, which was also a common scene at gas stations in the region. “The price increase for Pertamax is very high, up to Rp 3,550 per liter. I can't afford it," he said at the Tabing Raya gas station, Padang.

Safe stock

PT Pertamina Patra Niaga’s interim corporate secretary Irto Ginting said the availability of Pertalite was quite secure. “Currently, it is available for the next 17 days. The refinery plants are continuing to produce it. We will take care of the stock, especially up to the approaching homecoming exodus during Lebaran. We will ensure supply to all gas stations as needed," Irto said.

The guaranteed availability of Pertalite was also stressed by Deden Mochamad Idhani, Pertamina Patra Niaga’s CSR manager for East Java, Bali, and Nusa Tenggara.

The guarantee of safe stock failed to ease people’s worries about a possible shortfall and price hike in the future, given the large consumption shift from Pertamax to Pertalite.

"Honestly, I’m a bit worried. If the stock of Pertalite continues to decline, the price will rise. Thinking about it makes me dizzy, especially as Lebaran is coming up soon," Mochamad Nur Mustofa, 29, an online motorcycle taxi driver in Semarang, said.

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In Surabaya, East Java, some motorists at a number of gas stations looked with unease at the idea of having to join the queue to obtain Pertalite. At the Kebonsari gas station, a motorcycle rider arrived and had his bike filled up with Pertalite after waiting for up to 30 minutes.

Suhartono, who was at the Jemursari gas station, did not appear among the murmuring throng of customers. "The price increase for Pertamax is very high. For me, it is burdensome. So, I don’t mind queuing for Pertalite," the resident of Kutisari said.

Jakarta and its buffer zone was not immune from lines of vehicles at Pertamina gas stations. Some luxury cars, which usually fill up at non-Pertamina gas stations, were seen filling up at Pertamina outlets. A similar type of fuel with higher octane is available at a price per liter Rp 2,000 higher.

KOMPAS/YOLA SASTRA

A gas station officer is filling Pertalite gasoline at the Putrasuka Indonusa gas station, North Padang District, Padang, West Sumatra, Tuesday (5/4/2022). The increase in Pertamax gasoline to Rp 12,750 per liter from Rp 9,200 per liter since early April has made some drivers switch to Pertalite, which is much cheaper at Rp 7,650 per liter.

Meanwhile, queues for biodiesel were still evident. Some were seen in the Greater Surabaya area, which includes Surabaya, Gresik and Sidoarjo. Queues also occurred because of the timing in the distribution of supplies.

Tuesday afternoon, a long line of vehicles was seen at the gas station on Jl. Diponegoro, Sidoarjo. The vehicles spilled out from the gas station over 1.5 kilometers down to Jl. Diponegoro and the western end of Jl. Sisingamangaraja.

The line was dominated by box trucks and freight trucks. Joining them were several garbage trucks belonging to the Sidoarjo Environment and Sanitation Office as well as a number of private cars. The queue began to lengthen from as early as 7 a.m.

There has been a daily increase of around 38 kiloliters on average since early April.

Kusnadi, 45, the driver of a truck transporting cooking oil, said he had queued for 1.5 hours for biodiesel. Purchases were limited to a maximum of Rp 200,000 per vehicle or 39 liters at a price of Rp 5,150 per liter.

Taufik Kurniawan, Pertamina’s senior communication and relations supervisor for Sulawesi market operations, said the increase in Pertalite consumption had been restricted to Kendari and Greater Konawe. Such a situation, which had occurred since early April, had not been observed in other areas of Sulawesi.

He said the Pertalite consumption in Kendari and surrounding area had reached 358 kiloliters a day, which was a sizable increase from around 320 kiloliters per day as recorded in March.

“There has been a daily increase of around 38 kiloliters on average since early April. However, the figure is still considered normal and can still be catered to with the existing stock," he said.

Continuing up

Global oil prices rose on Tuesday as the United States and the European Union planned new sanctions against Russia for alleged war crimes in Ukraine. At the same time, Iran's nuclear talks with the West also stalled. The two geopolitical developments were believed to have raised concerns about global oil supply.

Brent crude was up 90 cents (0.8 percent) to US$108.43 a barrel on Tuesday. The price of US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil rose 78 cents (also 0.8 percent) to a level of $104.06 per barrel.

Reuters quoted FXTM analyst Lukman Otunuga as saying that with the EU preparing new sanctions that might target the Russian oil industry, crude oil prices could rise in the near term.

(REUTERS/XTI /GRE/AIN/NIK/VIO/IKI/JAL/BR O/ETA/JOL/COK/DIT/BEN)

This article was translated by Musthofid.