"The subsidy has been shifted to diesel fuel oil for the sake of economic activities," he stated at a press conference on the new price of fuel oils.
He added that even though the costs of fuel oil had been adjusted to be lower than the earlier ones finalized, he hopes that people do not use the resource extravagantly.
"We appeal to people to save fuel oils and not consume them extravagantly because of their lower prices. They should be rational as this is a scarce commodity," he emphasized.
The Indonesian government decided to revoke the subsidy for RON 88 gasoline but still grant a fixed subsidy of Rp1,000 per liter for diesel fuel, which will be effective from January 1.
The new price for premium (RON 88) has been set at Rp7,600 per liter. While subsidized diesel fuel will cost Rp7,250, kerosene was priced at Rp2,500 per liter.
Under the new scheme, the price of gasoline could change every month following its economic price development.
The cost of premium was Rp8,500 per liter, while that of diesel fuel was Rp7,500 after the price hikes were enforced in November.
Djalil further noted that he believes that the parliament will approve the allocation of subsidy for diesel fuel in the revised 2015 budget.
(Reporting by Satyagraha/Uu.H-YH/INE/KR-BSR/B003)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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