She is the daughter of Dr. Sumiyatno, the first Indonesian envoy to the World Health Organization and former president of the Biofarma pharmaceutical company.
[3][4] During her tenure as CEO she oversaw the development of alternative energy sources such as coal bed methane extraction and established a liquefied natural gas distribution system with Perusahaan Listrik Negara.
In January 2014, lawyer Rudi Alfonso alleged several legislators had threatened to have Karen fired if Pertamina did not give them money.
Rudi Rubiandini, the former head of Indonesia's upstream oil-and-gas regulator SKKMigas, had claimed Karen provided gratuities to members of the House of Representatives Commission VII on energy.
[7] In April 2018, it was reported the Attorney General's Office had named Karen a corruption suspect in relation to Pertamina's investment in the Basker Manta Gummy (BMG) block in Australia in 2009.
[10] She was detained again in september 2023 allegedly being involved for ongoing graft investigation related to the company's procurement of liquefied natural gas (LNG) over the past decade.