Indonesia's Pertamina pledges to improve transparency following corruption allegations
FILE PHOTO: A worker sits along with a street vendor as he waits for customers at a petrol station of the state-owned company Pertamina in Jakarta, Indonesia, August 22, 2022. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/File Photo
JAKARTA : Indonesia's state-owned energy company Pertamina on Monday publicly apologised and pledged to improve the firm's governance after five executives at its units were arrested over alleged corruption involving oil imports.
The Attorney General's Office last week arrested five executives at three units of Pertamina on charges of alleged corruption related to oil imports between 2018 and 2023 that caused $12 billion in state losses.
"We will fix the loopholes that (the AGO) found, so that it would not affect the company or state budget negatively," Pertamina CEO Simon Aloysius Mantiri told reporters.
The company would work with the energy ministry to improve transparency, and continue to import crude oil and refined products to ensure energy security, he said.
Three executives at three of Pertamina's subsidiaries were accused of colluding to justify higher crude oil and fuel imports volumes instead of sourcing them domestically, as required.
Two other executives at Pertamina Patra Niaga allegedly approved the importation of 90-octane gasoline, known as Pertalite, at the price of higher-quality 92-octane gasoline, known as Pertamax.
Both also face charges of approving a decision to blend 88-octane gasoline, known as Premium, with Pertamax, which was then sold at the price of higher-octane fuel.
