Indonesia's plan to import 150 million barrels of oil from Russia this year is running into regulatory and logistical hurdles, Reuters reported Friday, raising doubts over whether Moscow can deliver on a headline-grabbing supply deal announced only weeks ago.
Jakarta said in April that Moscow agreed to supply it with the oil, as Southeast Asia's largest economy sought to ease shortages sparked by the Iran war and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
One month later, Indonesia is still designing a special import mechanism and legal framework for the Russian oil imports, Reuters cited an official as saying.
"Pertamina has global bonds and it has to avoid things that can violate the terms of their global bonds. That's why we are in the process of coming up with a scheme," Indonesian Energy Ministry official Laode Sulaeman said, referring to Indonesia's state energy firm.
He added that no operator had yet been selected to handle imports and no timeline had been set.
