By Mohi Narayan and Fransiska Nangoy
May 9 (Reuters) - Indonesian state energy company PT
Pertamina has deferred some of its gasoline deliveries for May
to June after the high-demand season of Ramadan ended, trade
sources said.
The company made a "delivery adjustment" after considering
domestic demand, consumption patterns, product inventory levels
and energy security, said Murti Dewi Hani, a spokesperson at
Pertamina Patra Niaga, the company's trading unit.
She did not give details about volumes or timing.
Indonesia is Asia's biggest gasoline importer and buys an
average of 10 million-11 million tonnes of the motor fuel
annually.
The country imported about 60% of the gasoline it used last
year at a cost of $17 billion. It aims to introduce bioethanol
mandates for gasoline to further cut fuel imports and carbon
emissions.
A Singapore-based gasoline trader said local demand during
May will most likely be less than expected.
Indonesia imported about 2.1 million tonnes of gasoline in
March and April, ship-tracking data from Kpler showed. That is
down from 2.86 million tonnes in the same period last year,
according to data from Statistics Indonesia.
Indonesia's gasoline consumption growth is expected to slow
slightly along with its economy this year, although imports
could still hit records as the nation recovers from
COVID-related travel curbs.
Its economy grew faster than expected in the first quarter
but is set to struggle over the coming quarters, which could
affect domestic demand, analysts said.
(Reporting by Mohi Narayan in New Delhi and Fransiska Nangoy in
Jakarta. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
