Refusing to Lower Fuel Prices, Govt: Global Prices Not Stable Yet

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Minister Arifin Tasrif confirmed that the government had not yet reduced fuel prices due to various considerations, including fluctuating prices of global crude oil lately.

“The government still maintains the prices because global oil prices and the exchange rates are still unstable and may drop,” said Arifin during a meeting with the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission VII on Monday, May 4.

Arifin underlined that his side was monitoring the oil price crash. Although the prices often drop during a crisis, he added, it will return to normal within three months.

This condition is similar to the 2008 crisis when the price declined to US$38 barrel and soon jumped to US$70 per barrel, as well as to the 2019 Iran crisis.

Besides, Arifin went on, the country’s oil prices had fallen twice this year. “In January and February, the drops were quite significant,” he claimed.

Based on the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s monitoring, Indonesia’s fuel prices on average are the fourth-lowest among nine countries, and so they are more expensive than those of Vietnam, Myanmar, and Malaysia. Meanwhile, the solar (diesel fuel) price is the third-highest below Singapore and Laos.

CAESAR AKBAR