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new emission standard recently issued by the government has raised concerns of future fuel shortages as it requires vehicles to use high octane gasoline that is scarce in the country.

After a three-year prolonged negotiation due to resistance from state oil firm Pertamina, the Environment and Forestry Ministry issued a regulation that adopts the EURO IV emission level standard, an international standard on emissions from motor vehicles requiring automobiles use fuel with a sulfur content no higher than 50 parts per million (ppm).

The regulation has been issued despite the oil firm’s inability to produce high octane fuel locally.

“The government does not have to ask [all stakeholders] one by one before creating a necessary law like this,” Environment and Forestry Ministry’s air pollution control director Dasrul Chaniago told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Signed by Siti on March 10, the regulation will be implemented for new vehicles in the next 1.5 years to give car makers time to assemble new vehicles that use EURO IV compliant technology.

It is expected that the full implementation of the new regulation will come in the next four years after manufacturers are ready to produce diesel vehicles equipped with the technology.

Pertamina spokesperson Adiatma Sardjito said the company would gradually move to a EURO V standard, claiming Southeast Asia’s largest oil firm was optimistic that a new refinery in Tuban, West Java, and two refineries under its Refinery Development Masterplan Program (RDMP) in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, and Cilacap, Central Java, would start producing higher octane fuel by 2023.

Commenting on the implementation of the new standard, he declined to say that the company would import to meet the demand of motor vehicles.

“It is not easy to decide whether or not to import oil and that Pertamina will always comply with the government’s standards,” he said.

Dasrul said the government is aware that Pertamina might not be ready to produce high-octane gasoline by the time of the standard’s implementation.

He said that at that time, the country might have to rely on the supply from private fuel retailers.

“If Pertamina cannot provide the oil from its refineries, it has to import,” Dasril added.

Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo) executive Jongkie Sugiarto said the industry welcomed Siti’s move, but emphasized the importance of fuel availability.

Indonesia is the only country in the world to still use RON 88 gasoline, which is low in quality and high in sulfur, partially because of the country’s old refineries.

Some 87 percent of distributed fuel in Indonesia is Premium, which has a RON of 88. Pertamina’s year-end 2016 data showed that Premium consumption continued to decline, due to the rising sales of better-quality fuel, like Pertamax, which has a RON of 90.

Commission for Leaded Gasoline Eradication (KPBB) executive director Ahmad Safrudin said even a number of gasoline types with higher RON, like Pertamax, sold by Pertamina had yet to be EURO IV compliant.

Gasoline could be considered as EURO IV compliant if its sulfur content is no higher that 50 ppm. Pertamax and Pertamax Turbo have a sulfur content of 100 ppm, while Pertalite and Perta-Dex have sulfur content of 200 ppm and 500 ppm, respectively.

“Since 2001, we have urged Pertamina to upgrade its refineries, as it could lower emissions and increase efficiency in gasoline consumption,” said Ahmad.