TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - State-owned gas and oil company Pertamina decided to increase the price of non-subsidized 12-kilogram liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and asked people not to migrate to use the subsidized one or locally known gas melon.

“We will continue to monitor the stock and distribution of LPG to the public. We will also continue to educate people to ensure that LPG distribution is right on target. This will be done together with all stakeholders and the community,” said the Acting Corporate Secretary of Pertamina Patra Niaga, Irto Ginting, on Sunday, December 26.

The company adjusted the LPG price for all regions in accordance with the Aramco LPG Contract Price (CPA) which kept increasing throughout 2021.

As of November 2021, the LPG CPA reached US$847 per metric ton. According to Irto, the figure was the highest price since 2014, or a surge of 57 percent since January 2021.

The last price adjustment was made in 2017. If calculated from four years ago, the CPA price as of November 2021 jumped by 74 percent.

The price of non-subsidized LPG rose between Rp1,600-2,600 per kilogram. The gap, Irto added, was to support the uniformity of LPG prices in the future and to create equal prices between regions.

Irto also asserted that the price of subsidized 3-kg LPG would not be increased and would remain to refer to the highest retail price or HET.

Read: Ministry Mentions Wages When Mediating Pertamina, Workers

FRANCISCA CHRISTY ROSANA