KONTAN.CO.ID - JAKARTA. Indonesian state-energy company PT Pertamina said on Wednesday that ensuring fuel supply was its "top priority" as workers plan a ten-day strike next week, just when fuel demand typically increases as people travel for year-end holidays.

After the union failed to reach a deal with management over labour terms, workers at the country's biggest fuel supplier are set to hold a national strike from Dec. 29 to Jan. 7.

"The management anticipate and mitigate any conditions to ensure that the company's operations continue to run smoothly," Pertamina said in a statement, adding it was open to further dialogue.

As it seeks to short up supplies, the company has issued a tender seeking up to 1.2 million barrels of high speed diesel (HSD) for January delivery.

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It was looking for three cargoes for delivery between Jan. 7-12, Jan. 13-18, and Jan. 19-24, respectively with a maximum volume of 400,000 barrels each, the tender document showed.

The tender will remain open till Dec. 23 and has a validity until Dec. 24.

It is unclear how many of Pertamina's workers are expected to strike or why negotiations failed, but the union said the strike could end earlier than expected if its demands are met.

Editor: Yudho Winarto