JUL 29, 2000

First fuel, now kerosene shortage in Jakarta

JAKARTA -- As concerns about petrol supply have eased, fears are now mounting that a shortage of kerosene, a common cooking fuel in the country, could trigger social strife.

According to yesterday's edition of the Kompas daily, residents in Jakarta have had to queue for hours to buy kerosene since Wednesday.

Long lines of kerosene tankers have been seen at state oil and gas giant Pertamina's depots in north Jakarta, the newspaper said.

It added that kerosene supplies have been tight for the past four months on the island of Bali.

""The shortage in supply was caused by the increase in demand,'' Kompas quoted Pertamina official Awi Adil as saying.

Tankers were scheduled to deliver thousands of kilolitres of extra kerosene to the Indonesian capital yesterday.

Earlier this week, there were long queues at petrol kiosks throughout the capital as panic-buying prompted motorists to pump more oil to beat a fuel shortage.

The petrol shortage had resulted from problems at the Balongan refinery, which supplied 80 per cent of the capital's fuel demand.

A Pertamina spokesman said the refinery had been undergoing major repairs since June 20 and had resumed operations only on Tuesday.

""Since all the units at the Balongan refinery have resumed operation, we can guarantee a continuing fuel supply to Jakarta,'' Pertamina spokesman Ramli Djaafar said on Wednesday.

Like kerosene, a shortage of petrol and a price hike are sensitive matters in Indonesia as they could spark violent civil unrest evidenced in recent years. --Reuters

http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/asia/sea5_0729.html

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), July 28, 2000