Indonesia’s state oil company PT Pertamina may have to relocate its fuel storage tank in Jakarta after a fire killed dozens of people on Friday night.
Pertamina and other state-owned companies must work with local governments to assess the spatial layout of vital facilities to ensure they are at a safe distance from residential areas, State Enterprise Minister Erick Thohir said in Saturday’s information session.
“If (a safe distance) is not possible, we may have to move. There has been a push for two years to move the Plumpang depot to the port area owned by Pelindo,” Thohir said, following the advice of Vice President Ma’ruf Amin when he visited the scene today.
National Police spokesman Dedi Prasetyo clarified that 15 fatalities had been reported, down from the 17 deaths initially reported. Police are still searching for missing people and are still investigating the cause of the fire at the depot, which mainly distributes fuel to the Indonesian capital and the West Java area.
The fire broke out at the Plumpang Integrated Terminal in North Jakarta at 8.20pm local time on Friday and was extinguished around 10pm, according to Irto Ginting, corporate secretary of Pertamina Patra Niaga business unit, in a statement Among the victims were two children.
Pertamina said it will be able to maintain a sufficient supply of fuel with the support of other facilities in the area.
In 2009, the depot was hit by a major fire that officials attributed to human error.
–With the help of Norman Harsono.
