Indonesia’s state-owned oil company said on August 1 that it had not received an order to stop selling a cheap brand of gasoline, contrary to social media posts claiming the brand would be removed from gas stations later that month. The posts included a news report originally broadcast in January that quoted a minister as saying he was ready to take Pertalite off the market, but did not specify when the proposed changes would take effect.
“Pertalite will be discontinued in August 2024. Get ready. Everything will be expensive in 2024,” read an Indonesian text overlay on a May 22 TikTok post.
The Indonesian government subsidizes the price of Pertalite, making it one of the cheapest fuels for the country’s ubiquitous motorcycles and motorcycle taxis, called “ojek.”
In the TikTok video, a news anchor says that Pertalite will be discontinued in August 2024 and replaced by Pertamax Green, which is touted as a more environmentally friendly alternative.
Indonesia has been considering abandoning Pertalite for years, citing concerns about pollution from its clogged roads and a desire to reduce oil imports.
But the plan has met with little support. Many argue that removing relatively cheap gasoline from the pumps would drive up the cost of motorcycles and cars for millions of Indonesians.
In July, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, the coordinating minister for maritime affairs and investment, said the government would impose “restrictions” on the sale of pertalite, but did not provide further details.
However, this did not prevent posts from being published stating that Pertalite would be discontinued on TikTok, SnackVideo and X.
Some social media users seemed to believe this claim.
“People’s hard work is linked to a very difficult economic situation,” commented one, adding that raw materials should be “cheap.”
“It happened, you don’t have to regret it, that’s what you voted for,” wrote another, apparently referring to the Indonesian presidential election in February.
“Still delivering” Pertalite
A spokesman for Indonesian state-owned oil company Pertamina, which sells Pertalite, said the posts were unfounded.
Fadjar Santoso, head of Pertamina’s public communications department, said the company had not received any orders to stop or restrict sales.
“Pertalit is a subsidised fuel for which the government is responsible. To date, Pertamina is obliged to supply Pertalit,” he told AFP on August 1.
A keyword search revealed that the news report shared online was originally broadcast by Indonesian broadcaster BeritaSatu on January 20 (archived link).
Below you can see a screenshot comparison between the misleading posts (left) and BeritaSatu’s report (right):
The report included speculation about a halt to Pertalite production and quoted Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Arifin Tasrif as saying he had no objections to the plan as long as it did not require additional budget.
He did not give a specific date on which such a plan would come into effect.
