Pertamina Targets to Control Mahakam Block
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Selasa, 25 November 2014 19:22 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - State-owned oil and gas firm Pertamina is one step closer to gaining the majority of shares at Mahakam Block as French oil and gas company Total E&P Indonesie’s contract is due to expire in 2017.
By the end of this month, Pertamina will directly observe oil reserves at Mahakam Block as a follow-up on Total’s presentation before Pertamina and the government at Four Season Hotel a while ago, acting oil and gas director General Naryanto Wagimin said in a press release published on Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s official website on Tuesday, November 25, 2014.
Naryanto revealed that although Pertamina would be the main operator of Mahakam Block, the odds for the company to have 100 percent of the shares might be slim because the investment required to operate the block was huge.
However, the government would still be waiting for Pertamina to submit its proposal to manage Mahakam Block. The government, Naryanto said, had set the due date for Pertamina to submit the proposal within three months.
The Mahakam Block is currently managed by Total E&P Indonesie and Japan-based Inpex Corporation. The contract will expire in 2017, 50 years after it was inked on March 31, 1967.
AYU PRIMA SANDI