Govt to replace Pertamina's commissioners: Laksamana

The Indonesian government will in the near future replace the commissioners of state-owned oil and gas company PT Pertamina, the Dow Jones Newswires reported on Thursday.

Minister of State-owned Enterprises Affairs Laksamana Sukardi. who is Pertamina's president commissioner, said on late Wednesday that the current commissioners have completed their task of transforming the company from "an unclear entity into a corporation."

The commissioners were appointed in October after the government officially changed Pertamina's status into a limited liability company.

Many analysts criticized Laksamana for appointing himself as president commissioner, as there could be a conflict of interest as Pertamina is under his ministry's supervision.

Talks in the market have Edwin Gerungan, former head of the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency and a career banker, as a likely candidate to replace Laksamana as Pertamina's president commissioner. (*)