In November 2022, residents of Kupang, Indonesia, spent hours queuing for kerosene. East Nusa Tenggara’s quota had been cut by 3.48 per cent from the previous year, and many agents had lacked stock for about two weeks. One retailer received only one drum instead of the usual two or three and limited each buyer to five litres—one jerrycan.
The official ceiling was 4,000 rupiah per litre, but other sellers charged 10,000, 20,000 and sometimes 30,000. One resident queued from morning and obtained a bottle only at night for 10,000 rupiah. The provincial governor contacted the energy minister, and the regulator prepared an additional allocation. An administrative cut of 3.48 per cent became, at street level, a five-litre cap and a day-long wait.