Un-leaded fuel product hikes

Greater environment awareness and continued anti-pollution campaigns have prompted an increasing demand for unleaded fuel which already exceeds the current production level of state-owned gas and oil company Pertamina.

Company officials are so hopeful of the continuing trend that they that they anticipate an end in the demand of premium leaded fuel by 2003, the Jakarta Post reported.

Speaking at a seminar on Ozone organized by the National Institute of Technology in Bandung, West Java, Zainal Abiding Thamrin, who's in charge of Pertamina product control, said that this year alone demand for unleaded fuel is expected to reach 7.7 million kiloliters while only 6.6 million kiloliters of Ron 92 unleaded gasoline is scheduled to be produced.

Zainal said that due to increasing trend in demand, in the future they will produce Ron 88 Premium Unleaded to replace the current premium leaded fuel.

To replace Premix, Pertamina plans to produce Ron 95 Super Unleaded, which has a higher octane level.

"We hope that eventually in 2003 demand for premium (leaded) gasoline will be at zero," he said. (*)