Pertamina may re-route Middle East VLCC?s heading to Indonesia to avoid risk
Thursday, March 20 2003 - 03:26 AM WIB
State oil and gas company Pertamina said Thursday it had received notification from shippers that three Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC)?s of crude and high octane mogas component (HOMC) it imported from middle east might be rerouted from Ras Tanura in the Bay of Iran to Yanbu in the Red Sea to avoid risk of being attacked.
?Pertamina has received notification that two VLCC?s of Arabian crude from Saudi Arabia and one VLCC of HOMC from Kuwait each carrying 1.8 million barrels most likely be shipped from Yanbu in case US attacked Iraq,? said Pertamina president Baihaki Hakim.
The US had just begun attack on Iraq.
Separately Pertamina downstream director Muchsin Bahar said that rerouting woud delay arrivals for few days, but would not cause crude supply shortage to Balongan and Cilacap refinery. (godang)