TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - State-owned oil company Pertamina announced that they are unsure whether or not they can produce fuel that complies with Euro IV standards in 2018. Pertamina is currently producing low-sulfur content fuels but not up to the Euro IV standards.
“We’re preparing to produce it. The option available for the future is to import such fuels, but currently, we are not importing,” said Gigih Wahyu Hari Irianto, Senior Vice President Fuel Marketing, and Distribution of Pertamina.
Gigih stated that Pertamina will have to produce a Euro IV compliant fuel if ordered, but he hopes that the company’s current sub-variant product called Pertamina Turbo - that has 50 ppm sulfur content - would be enough to meet the Euro IV standards.
The Pertamina Turbo is the company’s initial step for them to comply with the strict Euro IV standards. Gigih claims that it already complies with the technical standards issued by the Environment and Forestry Ministry regarding sulfur content, which is a positive step towards Euro IV compliant fuel.
Pertamina is expected to be able to produce Euro IV fuels when its Refinery Development Master Plan project in Balikpapan is completed in 2022. The company even claims that they will be able to produce Euro 5 compliant fuels as soon as the refinery is fully operable.
DIKO OKTARA
