Balikpapan, East Kalimantan (ANTARA) – Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Bahlil Lahadalia, said the Balikpapan Refinery revitalization project, or Refinery Development Master Plan (RDMP), could reduce gasoline imports by up to 5.8 million kiloliters (KL) per year.”With the additional production of 5.8 million KL, our gasoline imports will be reduced to 19 million KL,” he stated at the Balikpapan Refinery RDMP project inauguration on Monday (January 12).Lahadalia explained that national demand reaches approximately 38.5 million kiloliters per year, while domestic production is projected at 14.27 million KL.This demand consists of 28.9 million KL of RON 90 gasoline per year, 8.7 million KL of RON 92 gasoline per year, and approximately 650,000 KL of RON 95 and RON 98 gasoline per year.Through the optimization of the Balikpapan Refinery's RDMP, the production of gasoline with an octane rating above RON 90 can be increased to 5.8 million kL per year.With this additional production capacity, imports of RON 92, RON 95, and RON 98 gasoline can be reduced to around 3.6 million kL per year, he noted.The government emphasized that meeting domestic fuel needs is part of the constitutional mandate. Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution states that production sectors affecting the livelihoods of the people must be controlled by the state.Therefore, he sees the strengthening and development of refineries as a manifestation of the state's responsibility to ensure the availability of energy supplies for the community.He then outlined three steps in achieving energy independence, namely by increasing refinery capacity, as is being done through the development of the Balikpapan Refinery.Second, encouraging energy diversification by optimizing biodiesel programs, including B40, to reduce dependence on fossil-based diesel.Third, maintaining a balance between national energy supply and demand to ensure fuel availability.According to Lahadalia, the Balikpapan RDMP is equipped with key facilities: the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) and the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracking (RFCC).With the CDU as the heart of the Balikpapan refinery, the refinery's capacity, from 260,000 barrels, can now be increased to 360,000 barrels of oil per day.Meanwhile, the RFCC unit processes crude oil, converting residue into high-value products.”The current RDMP has excellent quality, already on par with Euro 5, and this is moving towards net-zero emissions,” he assured.He added that this project is also integrated with two giant Lawe-lawe storage tanks with a total capacity of 2 million barrels, as well as the Tanjung Batu Fuel Terminal with a capacity of 125 thousand kiloliters to serve fuel distribution for eastern Indonesia.