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Indonesia slams Singapore’s ‘shameful’ fuel prices, plans pivot to US imports
Indonesia plans to slash fuel imports from Singapore and pivot to supplies from the United States and the Middle East, in a move that analysts see as a bid to reduce its dependence on the neighbouring city state and gain a strategic advantage in trade talks with Washington.
The oil-producing nation could redirect up to 60 per cent of its fuel imports away from Singapore over the next six months as part of a broader diversification strategy, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia told reporters on May 9.
“It is not only a matter of price but also geopolitical issues. We need to have a balance with other countries,” Bahlil said, adding that Indonesia aimed to progressively reduce imports from Singapore to zero “some day”.