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The Indonesian government has postponed a plan to limit public fuel consumption until further studies could be conducted to measure its effectiveness, local press reported Tuesday.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has asked related agencies to look into several procedures before imposing the program, which would include a preliminary trial, a pilot project, evaluation, and a public awareness campaign.
The program was initially expected to save 10 trillion rupiah ( 1.1 billion U.S. dollars) in subsidies, but its social impact could be much bigger, The Jakarta Post newspaper reported.
Under the program, the government will distribute a "kerosene control card" to low-income households across the country, with each household limited to 12.5 liters per month.
The government also plans to distribute a smart card to limit consumption of subsidized fuel by motorists in the country's most crowded islands of Java and Bali.
With the card, a car and a motorcycle can only consume five liters and one liter of subsidized fuel per day respectively.
"The President told us not to hurry with imposing the program until we are sure the program will run accordingly to the plan," Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro was quoted as saying. |
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