BPH Migas: Mini fuel depots should be built in remote islands

By Godang Sitompul

Downstream regulator BPH Migas said mini oil fuel depots with capacity of more than 10,000 kiloliters each need to be built in remote and frontier islands in order to ensure fuel supplies for people living on the islands.

Delivery by vessels of oil fuel to such islands have been often hampered by unfavorable climate. In order to solve the problem, the islands need to have depots that can store oil fuels for one or two month consumption, BPH Migas? Oil Fuel Director Henry Ahmad told Petromindo.com on Wednesday on the sidelines of the launching of the operation of oil fuel sub-agents in Selayar Islands regency, South Sulawesi province.

He said the local governments should get involved in building such depots.

When asked for comments, Selayar Islands Regent Muh. Basli Ali said he would welcome any investors who are willing to build fuel depot in the regency. "Selyar is strategically locatedin the middle of Indonesia. I think it a good idea to build an oil fuel depot here,? he said.

Setyorini Trihutami, Director for the Supervision of Downstream Business at the Directorate General of Oil and Gas, said there was once an investor, PT Intan Jaya Agro Megah Abadi, who wanted to build a depot on the regency. But the project has never been realized and the firm has not extended its permit.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon