Can a new brand really set Pertamina right? The Indonesian energy giant's recent woes have been well-documented and, with international players such as Shell and Petronas set to enter the newly-deregulated energy market, Pertamina has embarked on an ambitious rebranding developed by Landor.
Pertamina is clearly hoping that the new identity will represent a decisive break from a past that has often been characterised by allegations of corruption. Now under the management of president-director Ari Sumarno, Pertamina's new corporate identity includes a new logo -- inspired by an arrow -- which is aiming to convey dynamism and moving forward. The new slogan, 'Always there', meanwhile, is a bid to highlight Pertamina's competitive edge -- its nationwide network of 3,000 petrol stations. Recent months, however, have seen more attention paid to Pertamina's five-year spat with ExxonMobil over the Cepu oilfield. The dispute finally ended in March, when the two signed a joint operation deal for the US$2.6 billion oilfield, expected to reverse Indonesia's shrinking output.
Overall, the jury is still out over whether the new identity can reverse Pertamina's fortunes. Awareness levels are, unsurprisingly, strong within Indonesia, particularly of its retail business. However, its upstream aspirations have been broadcast with less clarity, particularly in comparison to its international peers.
Accordingly, the new 'Always there' brand driver is being touted as an aspirational call-to-action, to be applied in every aspect of Pertamina's dealings with its customers, colleagues and business partners. The four 'beliefs' that it has further elaborated are 'ubiquity and reach', 'customer intimacy', 'building relationships', and 'guaranteed reliability'.
In financial terms, at least, the company ended 2005 on a high, with net profit up 26 per cent on the back of soaring global oil prices. The profit came despite lower than expected domestic consumption following the Indonesian Government's decision to hike fuel prices by 126 per cent last October.
