Indonesia Ends Diesel Imports, Forces Shell and Rivals to Buy From Pertamina
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JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — Indonesia has officially stopped importing diesel fuel as all domestic demand is now supplied by national refineries, according to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources on Friday, Jan 23, 2026 in Jakarta. The policy requires all fuel distributors, including private firms such as Shell, Vivo, and BP AKR, to source diesel from domestic refineries.
Director General of Oil and Gas at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, Laode Sulaeman, said the halt applies across the board with no exceptions. “All of them must buy from Pertamina’s refinery, because there are no other large refineries besides Pertamina and a small one at TWU,” Laode said.
The government said the move was made possible after the completion of the Balikpapan Refinery Development Master Plan, which enabled full domestic production of diesel with a cetane number of 48. Officials expect the policy to strengthen supply security and reinforce the role of national refineries as the backbone of Indonesia’s energy system.
Indonesia currently uses two types of diesel fuel, CN48 and CN51. Laode said CN48 is now fully produced domestically following the Balikpapan upgrade, while CN51 will still be imported until the first half of 2026 as additional processing units are prepared.
“What is clear is that diesel is no longer imported as a finished product,” Laode said. “It is now produced here, at national refineries.”
The Balikpapan facility is operated by PT Kilang Pertamina Internasional and is part of a broader downstream strategy to reduce reliance on imported fuel. The project has been cited by the government as a milestone in Indonesia’s push for energy self sufficiency.
Looking ahead, Laode said refinery expansion opportunities would continue to be pursued, including the potential to process CN48 diesel at the Dumai refinery. He said capacity expansion was critical to meeting domestic demand and maintaining long term energy resilience.
“Refinery expansion will always be there, because the priority is increasing processing capacity so domestic needs can be fully supplied,” Laode said.