TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The government’s plan to follow up the result of the forensic audit of Pertamina Energy Trading Ltd (Petral) to law apparatus must be given our supports.
The result of the audit shows that there were irregularities in oil procurement.
By investigating this case, we hope that oil and gas mafia that gripped the company, which is a subsidiary of state-owned oil and gas company PT. Pertamina, can be disclosed.
It has been a long time that Petral, a Pertamina’s subsidiary in charge of the procurement of crude oil and trade of oil products, is full of problems.
This company allegedly became the extension of the third party to be involved in the oil procurement process. It was the third party that leaked information on oil procurement, initiated calculation of prices, and regulated tenders.
Before providing information to the participants of the tender, the third party provided the information to the oil and gas mafia network.
The result of a forensic audit by an independent auditor institution KordaMentha, recently, reinforces the irregularities in oil procurement.
The result found among others irregularities in the procurement of oil in the period of 2012-2014.
The oil and gas mafia network has won the contract of oil supply worth US$18 billion or around Rp250 trillion for three years.
The result also found that all suppliers of cred oil and fuel to Pertamina through Petral during the period were in fact affiliated with the same agency.
Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources said that the agency often used fronting traders and national oil company (NOC) to reap benefits.
Because of this foul game, Pertamina did not get the best price in oil procurement. Discounts for Pertamina that should have reached US$ 1,3 per barrel shrank into just US$ 30 cent per barrel.
The government does not have to be afraid to instruct law enforcers to disclose the oil and gas mafia network that has for years destroyed the order of our oil and gas.
The findings of the result of the forensic audit only must not end up becoming a pile of reports.
Collusion among oil and gas mafia has caused the high cost and inefficiency and put the people at a disadvantage.
The result of this audit is actually similar to the recommendation given by the oil and gas reform team who several months ago finished its tasks.
At that time, the team recommended disbandment of Petral because this institution had been marred with oil and gas mafia. The government then pledged that it would seriously eradicate the network of oil and gas mafia.
Now, we are awaiting the realization of the government’s seriousness in fighting the mafia.
The follow up of the result of the audit must be translated as revamping the system as a whole because if the government only disbanded Petral without breaking the chain of the mafia, the revamping move would be to no avail. And it would be just the same as changing the name of Petral only.
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