March 5, 2025
JAKARTA – Customers of Pertamina’s nonsubsidized fuel brands have expressed both anger and disappointment over the recent US$12 billion corruption scandal embroiling some subsidiaries of the state-owned oil and gas giant.
Among the many findings to emerge from the ongoing investigation by the Attorney General’s Office is that lower-grade fuel with a research octane number (RON) of 90 or below had been sold as the more expensive RON 92 fuel under the Pertamax brand.
This has prompted some consumers to switch to a different brand sold by private competitors, even though it would cost more. Others have taken matters into their own hands, due to frustration that Pertamina is the only fuel retailer in their area.
Setya, who uses a motorcycle for her daily commute in Bali, told The Jakarta Post on Friday that she planned on switching to Pertalite, Pertamina’s RON 90 subsidized fuel brand. Even though it was intended for low-income earners, she said she had no other options since Pertamina had a virtual monopoly on gas stations in her region.
On the flip side, other motorists have decided to purchase only nonsubsidized fuel brands in a bid to ensure that taxpayers’ money would not go to waste in subsidies meant for the poor.
Since last October, Pertamina has also required consumers to register via the company’s app to purchase Pertalite, as part of measures to better control and monitor sales of the subsidized fuel.
Still others have come to the realization that using nonsubsidized fuel would help maintain their vehicle’s performance and durability, and thus make it more cost-effective.
Indah, a worker based in Bali who has been a Pertamax customer for at least five years, told the Post on Friday that she was open to the idea of switching to Pertalite, especially if the line was not too long.
Dhela, who uses a motorcycle and works in Bandung, West Java, said on Sunday that the Pertamina corruption scandal had prompted her to switch immediately to a rival brand, which she said also had better service and fuel quality.
Bandung-based student Arya said on Sunday that he had also switched fuel brands for his motorcycle.
He made the decision after learning about the investigations that alleged the quality of the RON 92 Pertamax he had been buying was similar to that of RON 90 fuel, which he suggested also led others to also turn to private fuel distributors instead.
Pertamina’s social media accounts have been flooded with comments from people upset over the scandal, including some demanding compensation or encouraging others to start boycotting the state-owned company.
Other posts, along with media reports, showed longer lines at the gas stations of private distributors such as Shell and BP or some Pertamina gas stations looking unusually empty.
Shell did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Post, while BP declined to comment due to the sensitivity of the matter.
Pertamina has meanwhile acknowledged a decline in sales as an impact of the ongoing case, though it told reporters in late February this was observed only on Feb. 25.
At a press conference on Monday, Pertamina said its Pertalite and Pertamax brands were still projected to dominate nationwide sales at around 96 percent of the market share.
The AGO has named multiple executives at Pertamina subsidiaries as suspects of an embezzlement and fraud scheme pertaining to the energy giant’s import and export deals between 2018 and 2023.
The scheme allegedly involved artificially reducing refinery outputs, rigged import tenders with inflated prices and fraudulently selling lower-octane gasoline under a more expensive, higher-quality brand.
According to an analysis by the Center of Economic and Law Studies (Celios), the fuel scam has incurred estimated consumer losses of Rp 17.4 trillion (US$1 billion) in 2023 alone based on the price difference for the fuel brands, but excluding potential damage to vehicles from lower-quality fuel.
Meanwhile, the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) is collecting evidence of consumer loss for potentially filing a class action against Pertamina units implicated in the scandal.
Through a dedicated online portal it opened on Feb. 26, LBH Jakarta has received 426 complaints regarding financial losses as well as evidence of vehicle damage.
On Feb. 26, the energy company’s retail subsidary PT Pertamina Patra Niaga denied allegations of fuel fraud, saying it had met procurement standards and specifications. At the same time, it argued that illicit fuel blending was common practice in the country.
On Monday, Pertamina CEO Simon Aloysius Mantiri, made the first public apology on behalf of the state-owned oil and gas giant for the graft-ridden import scandal.
He also promised to clean up the company and allow third-party product testing in a bid to restore public trust.