Pertamina to import 60,000 barrels of fuel per day

State owned oil and gas company Pertamina will import 60,000 barrels per day of fuel from Singapore following the halt in the production activities of the company?s Balongan refinery plant in Indramayu, West Java, Suara Karya reported on Tuesday.

?Pertamina needs to import 60,000 barrels of fuel per day to cope with the decline in the national fuel stock due to the damage in one of the processing unit of the Balongan refinery plant,? Pertamina?s senior marketing manager Rachmat Drajat told the daily.

The damage in the refinery plant has caused a decline in the available fuel stocks, which are currently maintained to be able to supply of the national fuel needs for between 22 and 23 days.

Pertamina said earlier that it needed to increase its refined oil imports by about one million to nine million barrels beginning February to cope with the decline in the domestic fuel production due to the damage in the Balongan refinery plant.

The damage occurred on the valve of the plant?s residue catalytic cracking (RCC) unit. Pertamina will need at least two weeks to repair the damage in the plant, which has a capacity of 125,000 barrels per day.

The Balongan plant supplies about 30 percent of the national fuel needs particularly in Jakarta, West Java and Banten. A major overhaul was carried in September, last year, forcing the plant to stop operation for at least 70 days. (*)