Jayapura, Jubi – Merauke regency in South Papua province is one of Indonesia’s major food-producing regions, with tens of thousands of hectares of rice fields supporting the local economy and contributing to national food supplies.
Maintaining rice production requires farmers to use fuel to operate agricultural machinery, from land preparation through to harvesting. However, accessing affordable fuel has not always been easy, as farmers in Tanah Miring district have experienced.
Bustomi, head of the Sumber Makmur Farmers Group, said that before a dedicated agricultural fuel service became available, he and other farmers had to travel to town to buy diesel from retailer at prices higher than subsidized Bio Solar.
“In the past, we had to travel towards the city to buy diesel from retailers. It took around one to two hours or even longer. And that was if fuel was available,” he told Jubi by phone from Jayapura on October 20, 2026.
Farmers were forced to rely on retail diesel because regular petrol stations did not have a specific fuel allocation for them.
Meanwhile, purchasing subsidized Bio Solar in jerry cans required a recommendation letter from the relevant authorities.
Bustomi, who said he had been farming since 2018, said they usually paid between Rp12,000 and Rp14,000 per litre for retail diesel.
“We bought fuel according to what we could afford. For example, if we needed 30 litres for harvesting that day but did not have enough money, we would buy only half that amount,” said Bustomi, who leads a 20-member farmers group in SP4, one of the transmigration settlements in Tanah Miring district.
Farmers in Tanah Miring and surrounding districts can now access fuel through Petrol Station 86.996.01 in Amunkay village, which has been designated by the Merauke regency administration to serve the agricultural sector.
The dedicated farmers’ fuel station, the first of its kind in eastern Indonesia, provides easier access, more reliable supplies and subsidized fuel at regulated prices: Bio Solar diesel at Rp6,800 per litre and Pertalite petrol at Rp10,000 per litre.
Bustomi said farmers needed between 100 and 115 litres of diesel to cultivate one hectare of land during each planting season. At the retail price of Rp12,000 per litre, fuel costs could reach between Rp1.2 million and Rp1.38 million per hectare.
Using subsidized Bio Solar instead could save farmers between Rp520,000 and Rp598,000 per hectare each planting season.
The dedicated station has also reduced the distance farmers need to travel to obtain fuel. Previously, Bustomi had to make a round trip of up to 40 kilometres to buy retail diesel. He now travels just 10 kilometres one way to reach the agricultural fuel station.
Sudirman, a farmer from SP4 who belongs to the Sidodadi Farmers Group, has also experienced the change.
Having farmed since 2005, he has witnessed the transition from using animal power to operate farmland to relying on agricultural machinery, which has made farming work faster.
Musriadi Mandati, supervisor of Petrol Station 86.996.01, said the facility serves 192 farmers groups across 14 villages in Tanah Miring district. Farmers from other districts, including Kurik and Semangga, also travel there to buy fuel.
“For diesel, we serve around 10 farmers groups a day, while for Pertalite we serve about seven groups, depending on how many farmers come. The furthest customers come from Kurik and Semangga districts, travelling 40 to 50 kilometres to reach the station,” Musriadi said.
The station serves farmers daily from 8am to noon and from 1pm to 4pm Papua time.
Musriadi said the amount of fuel each farmers group could purchase was determined by the quota stated in a recommendation letter issued by the local Agriculture Office. The letter specified the group’s fuel requirements for operating agricultural machinery.
“Some groups are allocated 500 litres, others 1,000 litres, and some receive even more. They cannot collect the entire allocation at once; it must be collected in stages. Farmers usually use jerry cans, although some brings hand tractors,” he said.
Fuel must be collected by the head of the farmers group. Another person may collect it on their behalf if they provide an authorisation letter, a measure intended to ensure subsidized fuel reaches its intended recipients.
The dedicated station in Tanah Miring is part of the Merauke regency administration’s efforts to expand farmers’ access to fuel.
The local government has also proposed around 15 additional locations for similar services in several zones targeted for food development and national strategic projects.
At the station’s inauguration on September 24, 2026, Merauke Regent Yoseph Bladib Gebze said the initiative reflected the local government’s commitment to supporting national food security and self-sufficiency.
He said the service also responded to farmers’ calls for more reliable and convenient access to fuel for operating agricultural machinery.
Supporting the local government’s initiative, Pertamina Patra Niaga has introduced a data-based distribution system for subsidized fuel to ensure allocations reflect farmers’ needs.
Awan Raharjo, executive general manager of Pertamina Patra Niaga’s Papua Maluku regional office, said the dedicated station in Tanah Miring was designed to improve access to energy while ensuring subsidized fuel was distributed to the intended recipients.
“The operation of this dedicated farmers’ fuel station has been aligned with a data-based subsidized fuel distribution mechanism, applicable regulations and coordination with the Agriculture Office. This is to ensure the allocation is appropriate in quantity, reaches the intended recipients and fully supports farmers’ use of agricultural machinery,” he said.
To monitor distribution, Pertamina uses barcode scanning to verify that fuel is being used for agricultural machinery. The company also coordinates with the Agriculture Office and conducts regular monitoring to prevent the misuse of subsidized fuel.
Initially, the Amunkay station received a monthly allocation of 95,000 litres of Bio Solar and 60,000 litres of Pertalite, which is not exclusively reserved for farmers.
Awan said the allocation was still sufficient to meet current demand. However, anticipating increased demand from farmers, Pertamina Patra Niaga had proposed an additional fuel allocation for the fourth quarter of 2026.
The dedicated farmers’ fuel station in Tanah Miring highlights the importance of affordable fuel access in supporting agricultural mechanisation.
Lower prices and shorter travel distances are helping farmers reduce operating costs and make it easier to use agricultural machinery. (*)
