Baihaki supports oil price assumption in the state budget

The president of state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, Baihaki Hakim, said that the oil price assumption set in the state budget at $20 per barrel was just right to anticipate fluctuation of oil prices in the international market.

He noted that settling oil price assumption at $30 per barrel, as suggested by a number of parties, including some legislators, was too optimistic.

"Oil price assumption should remain at the level of $20 to $22 per barrel," he said in Caracas, where he attended the Organization of Oil Producing Countries (OPEC) summit.

He noted that if oil price assumption set at $30 a barrel, it would put the government in a difficult position when oil prices dropped below that level because the government would be compelled to revise down the budget. .

He noted that the level of $20 per barrel was the realistic one.

Nevertheless, Baihaki also supported President Abdurrahman Wahid's statement that oil prices should stay at $25 to $26 a barrel. That's also a realistic level, he noted.

Crude oil prices are continuously soaring, reaching $37 a barrel at one point - the highest in the last decade. (*)