Indonesian oil company says it does not ban 2-stroke motorcycles from refuelling at its gas stations

The image of the purported letter was posted here on Facebook on August 21, 2021.

The logo of Pertamina, Indonesia's state energy company, can be seen on the upper right-hand side of the letter, which was dated August 22, 2021.

Translated to English, the Indonesian-language text in the letter states: “ANNOUNCEMENT:

"STARTING FROM 22 AUGUST 2021, ALL GAS STATIONS DO NOT SERVE TWO-STROKE MOTORCYCLES THAT WANT TO REFUEL WITH PERTALITE.”

The post's caption reads: "At refuelling gas stations no longer serve refuelling 2-stroke motorcycles with PERTALITE.

"What happens with the retailers (PERTAMINI) ?"

Image

Screenshot of the misleading post, taken on September 2, 2021

Pertalite is one of eight gasoline products from Pertamina.

The identical image also appeared in other Facebook posts, such as here, here, here and here.

The claim, however, is false. 

Fajriyah Usman, acting senior vice president of corporate communications and investor relations at Pertamina, told AFP on August 27, 2021, that the photo was "a hoax".

"It is not an official announcement from Pertamina, therefore it is a hoax," she said. 

Eko Kristiawan, the company's unit manager for communication, relations & CSR in western Java region, confirmed to AFP on September 1, 2021, that the letter "was not issued by Pertamina".  

"There is never such ban from Pertamina," he said. 

There are no credible media reports about the announcement, and there is no such announcement on Pertamina's website and its social media accounts, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.