LPG supply will be stable in 2010: Pertamina

The shortage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in recent weeks would return to normal in next few days but the stability in the supply could be reached in 2010 when all infrastructure facilities currently under construction have been fully operated.

?The problem is expected to be fully resolved in 2010 when construction of the necessary infrastructure is completed,? said Pertamina's President Ari H. Soemarno on Thursday.

Pertamina has increased its LPG imports to cope with the supply shortage. Pertamina had secured a 10-year contract to import 1 million tons of LPG a year, starting January nest year with Bermuda-based LPG trader Petredec Limited.

In order to solve the bottleneck in the LPG distribution, Pertamina is currently increasing the number of LPG tankers and its filling stations. At the same time, Pertamina also increases the receiving capacity of its LPG floating storages to 3 x 40,000 tons per day from 2 x 40,000 tons per day at present.

With the improvement in the distribution facilities and the signing of the long-term LPG import contract, he hoped that the shortage of the LPG supply would not occur again in 2010 even if there would be a problem in the operation of the Balongan and Cilacap LPG plants. (*)