Prabowo Orders Contract Audit Following Bali Queues as Minister Bahlil and Pertamina Project Confidence

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — President Prabowo Subianto has ordered a comprehensive audit of commercial fuel distribution contracts, stepping in after retail delivery bottlenecks triggered long queues at filling stations across the resort island of Bali.

Addressing a plenary cabinet session marking two years of his administration at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, the head of state instructed Coordinating Minister for Downstreaming and Energy Transition and Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia, state energy firm PT Pertamina, and sovereign wealth manager BPI Danantara to re-examine all downstream logistics agreements.

"I instruct the Minister of Energy, I instruct the President Director of Pertamina, and I instruct Danantara, along with the relevant state-owned enterprises, to re-examine those contracts," Prabowo said in remarks broadcast on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026.

The presidential order elevates a regional logistical snarl into a high-level review of contractual governance across the nation's energy distribution network. With the government capping subsidized fuel prices to shield household purchasing power from volatile global markets, persistent retail disruptions threaten to stoke consumer anxiety and disrupt business activity. Mandating that both Pertamina and Danantara review shipping and distribution pacts signals an impending overhaul of downstream transport arrangements under closer executive oversight.

President Rules Out National Stock Deficit

Prabowo dismissed suggestions that the retail queues in Bali reflected a broader structural exhaustion of domestic petroleum supplies, asserting that sovereign reserves remain cushioned and isolating the breakdown to inter-island transit links.

"What we experienced earlier in Bali, the delay in fuel deliveries, was not because inventories were empty, but because of distribution," Prabowo emphasized.

The president's remarks were delivered after energy officials moved to project confidence regarding national energy reserves, assuring the executive branch and the public that inventories remain on firm ground despite localized supply chain hiccups.

Ministers and Pertamina Signal Strong Outlook

Presenting an energy progress report during the cabinet session, Bahlil affirmed that sovereign petroleum reserves remain stable. Inventories of subsidized 90-octane Pertalite stand between 16 and 18 days of forward demand, while non-subsidized commercial grades comfortably exceed mandatory national emergency thresholds.

"Our national fuel reserves for Pertalite currently sit at 16 to 18 days," Bahlil reported. "This is for the subsidized RON-90 fuel. All other fuel categories remain well above the mandatory national minimum."

Regarding the situation in Bali, Bahlil explained that terminal transfers were temporarily slowed by maritime shipping delays from East Java, where an inbound fuel tanker scheduled to dock at dawn did not berth until the evening. Emergency supply operations were quickly launched, successfully lifting operating stockpiles across Bali back to a 12-day buffer. Bahlil added that logistics teams are also preparing for weather-related challenges elsewhere across the country, such as riverbed siltation in parts of Kalimantan and Papua that requires shifting marine cargo to overland tanker trucks.

Reinforcing the administration’s optimistic stance, downstream subsidiary PT Pertamina Patra Niaga announced that national fuel procurement has already been finalized through the end of 2026 and into the first quarter of 2027. Corporate Secretary Roberth MV Dumatubun stated from Balikpapan that the company has closed all relevant procurement negotiations, including supplementary gasoline import contracts, ensuring unhindered physical supply across all regions.

Roberth noted that with future supply agreements locked in, Pertamina is concentrating on field distribution and partnering with local administrations, the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), and the National Police to crack down on unauthorized industrial diversion and keep subsidized fuels accessible to eligible consumers.