JAKARTA, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina planned to finish the kerosene-to-liquified-petroleum-gas (LPG) conversion program by mid 2010, in an effort to reduce dependency on expensive fuel subsidies, local media reported here.     

    Pertamina's deputy director for marketing and trading Hanung Budya was quoted by the Jakarta Post as saying that the conversion would save about 10.4 trillion rupiah (some 1.1 billion U.S. dollars) fuel subsidies in 2010.

    "We expect to complete the program in the first half of 2010," he said.

    The program started two years ago.

    Under the program, the government is switching the subsidy from kerosene to the three-kilogram canister LPG, targeting poorer people.

    The conversion program is implemented by Pertamina by distributing conversion packages, comprising a stove and a 3-kilogram LPG canister, to targeted households.

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