Again, Oil Reserves Found in Madura

 

       Petronas, through its company, PC North Madura II, managed to find oil reserves through the Hidayah-1 Exploration well in the North Madura II Working Area, which is located off the coast of East Java, Indonesia. The discovery was a result of the Hidayah-1 Exploration well drilling started on January 7, 2021, and has reached a depth of 2,739 meters.

Emeliana Rice-Oxley

    Vice President of Exploration, Upstream Petronas Emeliana Rice-Oxley said, Hidayah-1 well managed to find a reservoir layer containing good quality oil in the Ngimbang Carbonate Formation and had a flow test result of 2,100 barrels of oil per day (BOPD) with high quality also good.

"The discovery of the Hidayah-1 Exploration well is a major historical landmark for the North Madura II Work Area as evidenced by the potential for an oil-filled reservoir layer in the area," said Emeliana Rice-Oxley.

"This also encourages the development of the large promising potential of Exploration in Indonesia," said Emeliana Rice-Oxley.

Blogger Agus Purnomo In SKK Migas

    According to the plan, the results of the Hidayah-1 Exploration well drilling will be further evaluated to determine the potential size of these reserves. Meanwhile, Deputy for Planning of SKK Migas Jaffee A Suardin said that currently, his party is conducting a final analysis related to determining the number of resources.

"Of course, this discovery in the future will provide benefits for local governments and local communities after the potential for oil can be produced," he said.

Surya, Page-7, Friday, Feb 26, 2021

Petronas Finds New Oil Reserves in Madura

 

    Petronas' subsidiary, PC North Madura II Ltd., managed to find oil reserves through the Hidayah-1 Exploration well in the North Madura II Working Area, which is located off the coast of East Java, Indonesia. 

Blogger Agus Purnomo in Petronas PC Ketapang II

    PC North Madura II Ltd. is the sole operator with a participating interest of 100 percent in the North Madura II Working Area. The drilling of the Hidayah-1 exploration well began on January 7, 2021, and has reached a depth of 2,739 meters.

    The Hidayah-1 well succeeded in finding a reservoir layer containing oil with good reservoir quality in the Ngimbang carbonate formation and having a flow test result of 2,100 barrels of oil per day (BOPD) with good oil quality.

"The results of the Hidayah-1 exploration well drilling will be further evaluated to determine the potential size of these reserves," said Emeliana Rice-Oxley, Petronas Vice President of Exploration, Upstream.

Emeliana Rice-Oxley

    She emphasized that the discovery of the Hidayah-1 Exploration well is a major proof of success for the North Madura II Work Area, which is proven by the potential for a reservoir layer containing oil in the area.

"This also encourages the development of promising exploration potential in Indonesia. We will always collaborate with the Indonesian government to realize clean and sustainable energy for Indonesia," She said.

                                Blogger Agus Purnomo in SKK Migas

"We are grateful for the great support provided by SKK Migas and the Sampang district government in the successful drilling of the Hidayah-1 exploration well. This discovery is evidence of Petronas' commitment to continuing the development of the upstream oil and gas business in Indonesia," added the President of PC North Madura II Ltd. Mohd Nazlee Rasol.

    Petronas is also the operator of the Bukit Tua Iapangan off the coast of East Java and is a partner of six other Cooperation Contractors located on the mainland and off the coast of Sumatra, Natuna, East Java, and Kalimantan.

Harian Bangsa, Page-4, Friday, Feb 26, 2021

Heavy Duty Runway Lifting

 

Improving the performance of upstream oil and gas is still homework that needs to be completed by industry players in the country, in line with the low lifting achievement by some contractors.

Blogger Agus Purnomo in SKK Migas

Based on data from the Special Task Force for Upstream Oil and Gas Business Activities (SKK Migas), out of 15 large cooperation contract (KKKS) contractors that produce oil and condensate, eight companies are unable to meet the production targets ready for a sale (lifting) in the work program and budget (work program and budget / WP & B) 2020.

PT Pertamina EP

PT Pertamina EP, for example, realized lifting reached 93.5% of the WP&B. A similar condition occurred in Conocophillips (Grissik) Ltd with a lifting achievement of 92.2% from WP&B. 

Blogger Agus Purnomo In Petronas Carigali Ketapang

    Meanwhile, Petronas Carigali (Ketapang) Ltd was only able to record a lifting of 76.8% of the target. On the other hand, the KKKS with the largest oil production and lifting, ExxonMobil Cepu Limited (EMCL), is still able to meet the target in 2020 with the realization of lifting reaching 217,637 barrels per day (bpd) from the Cepu Block.

the Cepu Block and Banyu urip Field

This achievement came from the Banyu Urip field production which had reached a peak production of 230,000 bpd. In gas lifting, out of 15 large KKKS, there are also eight companies that are unable to meet the target according to WP&B, namely Conocophillips (Grissik) Ltd, Pertamina EP, Eni Muara Bakau B.V, and Medco E&P Natuna. 

Blogger Agus Purnomo In PHE-WMO

    Then, other contractors who failed to reach the target were Pertamina Hulu Energi West Madura Offshore (PHE-WMO), PT Pertamina Hulu Energi Jambi Merang, Husky-CNOOC Madura Ltd (HCML), and Pearl Oil (Sebuku) Ltd.

Deputy for Operations of SKK Migas, Julius Wiratno explained that his party was preparing a warning or warning for KKKS that did not reach the target in accordance with the deal.

"For the 2020 performance, a 'love letter' is currently being drafted, this week it is [sent]," he said.

He emphasized that the KKKS could get sanctions for not being able to achieve the target. Sanctions can be in the form of tightening KKKS spending until the KKKS work plans and budgets are not approved.

"There are also those whose cost recovery is not approved if it is not in accordance with the initial agreement," he said.

He also highlighted a number of subsidiaries of PT Pertamina (Persero) that have not been able to meet the lifting target last year. Julius assessed that this was due to economic problems in the field. However, SKK Migas and Pertamina have made an agreement to improve performance this year. 

    Previously, the President Director of PT Pertamina Hulu Energi, Budiman Parhusip, said that Pertamina has challenges with a high decline rate due to managing old fields. However, his party has prepared a number of contracts related to the drilling program to optimize lifting.

"We hope that the full cooperation will run smoothly," he said.

Meanwhile, Pertamina is planned to manage around 60% of the oil and gas fields in Indonesia. Currently, about 40% are still managed by this state-owned company. With this projection, the government also has high hopes for Pertamina in achieving the oil lifting target of 1 million BPD. Meanwhile, the government is deemed necessary to intervene in the decline in Pertamina's performance in the national upstream oil and gas sector.

Trisakti University lecturer Pri Agung Rakhmanto explained that the main factor for Pertamina's decline in production last year was due to the economy in the field plus the pressure of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to him, old fields have an effect on the decline in investment and Pertamina's business activities. Meanwhile, the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in limited operational activities.

"Pertamina is now the backbone of national production with more and more blocks being transferred to it by mistake. The government should be able to provide more support, "he said.

He suggested that the cooperation contract should include fiscal aspects affected by the latest economic conditions. Meanwhile, Executive Director of the National Oil and Gas Companies Association (Aspermigas) Moshe Rizal said that the fall in oil prices coupled with a decrease in demand due to the Covid-19 pandemic has indeed put heavy pressure on KKKS financially. 

    In addition, operational activities are hampered by large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) even though the budget is available. As a result, project execution is hampered, including maintenance operations, workovers, and other activities that can help maintain production levels.

"For this year, everything depends on how fast we recover economically and how fast the distribution of vaccines is so that it can reduce the infection rate," he said.

The President Joko Widodo

PRICE OF POWER PLANT GAS

President Joko Widodo has set the price of natural gas for power plants at a maximum of US $ 6 per MMBtu. The regulation is in Presidential Regulation Number 121 of 2020 concerning Amendments to Presidential Regulation Number 40 of 2016 concerning Natural Gas Pricing which was promulgated on December 29, 2020. In Article 4 Paragraph 3 it is stated that the determination of certain natural gas prices can be given to natural gas users. engaged in the supply of electricity for the public interest. 

This Presidential Regulation is in line with the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Regulation Number 10 of 2020 concerning Amendments to the Regulation of the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Number 45 of 2017 concerning Utilization of Natural Gas for Power Plants. This regulation confirms the adjustment of the gas price for PT PLN (Persero) 's needs to be the US $ 6 per MMBtu.

Bisnis Indonesia, Page-4, Thursday, Jan 7, 2021

Wait PLN, Field Kepodang Ready to Stream Gas

PT Perusahaan Gas Negara Tbk (PGN) stated that gas production from Kepodang Field, Muriah Block will flow after the gas sale and purchase agreement (PJBG) with PT PLN (Persero) is signed. PGN is also optimistic that it will win an arbitration suit against Petronas Carigali Muriah Ltd (PCML) following the cessation of Kepodang Field gas production in September 2019.

PGN President Director Suko Hartono said that 80% of participating interest / PI ownership in Muriah Block which was initially held by PCML had been transferred to his party through Saka Energi Muriah Ltd (SEML). Thus, his party can produce Kepodang Field.

"So at least there is a gas flow of 10-20 MMSCFD (million standard cubic feet per day)," he said.

Kepodang Field, Blok Muriah started producing gas for the first time at 56 MMSCFD at the end of August 2015. The gas supply was channeled with the Kalimantan-Java (Kalija) I pipeline managed by PT Kalimantan Jawa Gas (KJG) to the Steam Gas Power Plant (PLTGU) Tambak PLN's Lorok in Semarang, Central Java.

Bloggger Agus Purnomo in Petronas Carigali Ketapang

However, in July 2017, Petronas stated that Kepodang Field was in force majeure because the reserves did not match the predictions. This field gas production was then stopped on 23 September 2019.

Suko added, his party had received permission from the Special Task Force for Upstream Oil and Gas Business Activities (SKK Migas) to restart gas production at Kepodang Field. But he was not sure when the gas would start flowing because it was still waiting for the gas purchase agreement by PLN.

"This is what we are trying to do so that gas production can be in 2020-2021. We are waiting for the PJBG, "he said.

Previously, Saka Energi had sent an official letter to PLN regarding gas supply from Kepodang Field. Another commercial aspect that needs to be prepared is the Gas Transportation Agreement (GTA), where Saka will negotiate with KJG as a transporter.

PGN has been involved in the management of Kepodang Field, Blok Muriah from the beginning through SEML with 20% PI ownership. However, PCML and SEML have signed legal documents on the transfer of a participating interest or the Deed of Assignment (DoA) of Petronas participation shares at the end of January.

So, now SEML holds 100% interest participation in the Muriah Block. Even though the production has stopped since September 2019, the function testing activities for important equipment in the Kepodang Field are still carried out routinely. Over the past five months, Saka and Petronas have also made operational transitions, including conducting joint operations trials to keep operating facilities functioning properly. This is so that Saka can directly produce gas as soon as management switches.

Arbitration Lawsuit

At the same time, PGN Finance Director Arie Nobielta Kaban revealed, the lawsuit against Petronas Carigali related to the cessation of Kepodang Field gas production in the Arbitration International Chambers of Commerce (ICC) is still rolling. He is optimistic he can win this lawsuit.

"There is potential [to win], according to our lawyer, the gap is very large, around 70%, we won," he said.

The arbitration award is likely to come out in 2021. The lawsuit was filed because PGN also holds an 80% stake in KJG, in addition to the PI in the Muriah Block. Kaban explained the cessation of the Kepodang Field gas supply had an impact on the value of the KJG Kalija I pipeline.

"So, this pipe needs to be impaired in accounting because the book value is higher, which is the US $ 98 million," he said.

Previously, according to a letter from the Board of Directors of PGN on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) securities information disclosure in September 2019, the lawsuit was related to ship or pay obligations as stipulated in the gas transportation agreement between PCML, KJG, and PLN.

Because PCML ended the GTA with KJG and PLN earlier than the agreement following the end of the PJBG with PLN. PGN had revealed that based on the initial plan, the gas flowed through Kalija I Pipe reached 116 million MMSCFD. However, to guarantee the company's investment in the pipeline, a ship or pay scheme was established with a minimum limit of gas flowing at 104 MMSCFD.

The realization, since the Kepodang Field began production in 2015, the gas flowed through Kalija I Pipe has always been below the minimum limit. In 2015, the gas flowing was only 86.06 MMSCFD. Furthermore, Kepodang Field only releases gas of 90.37 MMSCFD in 2016 and 75.64 MMSCFD in 2017.

Investor Daily, Page-17, Friday, July 10, 2020

See Pertamina's New Structure

Friday, June 12, 2020, became a special day for PT Pertamina (Persero), because at that time through the General Meeting of Shareholders (GMS) held virtually during the Covid-19 pandemic, the structure of this oil and gas BUMN changed.

Although there have been many speculations circulating before, starting from the very hot one, namely the issue of replacing the President Director to the changes in the composition of the directors, the results gave many surprises. The government decided to keep Nicke Widyawati as President Director. For this, the government has its own reasons.

Nicke Widyawati

"So far, Nicke Widyawati is still the best as Pertamina's Managing Director, because it is able to carry out the tasks assigned," said SOE Minister Erick Thohir.

SOE Minister Erick Thohir

The government has also streamlined the number of directors from 11 to six, and the nomenclature of the position of directors of the state-owned oil and gas company has also been changed namely the finance director, director of logistics and infrastructure, director of human resources, director of business support and director of the portfolio strategy and new ventures.

What made the public ask was when the AGM abolished the positions of upstream director, corporate marketing director, retail marketing director, processing director, and director of processing and petrochemical megaprojects.

No wonder, considering that this position is very strategic for Pertamina which incidentally has a core business in the oil and gas sector. In addition, Pertamina also has a 'big project' which is building a number of oil refineries. However, it turns out the government wants the special business to be handled by a subsidiary (sub-holding).

"The establishment of this sub-holding is to integrate Pertamina's business which is handled by a number of its subsidiaries to become one focus," said Erick.

Fajriyah Usman

Pertamina Corporate Communication Vice President Fajriyah Usman explained, as holding Pertamina's duties would be directed at managing portfolios and business synergies throughout the Pertamina Group, accelerating the development of new businesses and running national programs.

Whereas the sub-holding will play a role to encourage operational excellence through the development of scale and synergy of each business, accelerate the development of existing business and business capabilities as well as increase the ability and flexibility in partnership and funding that is more profitable for the company.

Through this new structure, Pertamina is expected to become more agile, focused, and faster in developing world-class capabilities in its business. This is expected to accelerate the growth of the business scale to become a leading global energy company with a market value of US $ 100 billion and to be a driver of social development in 2024. 

    Energy Watch Executive Director Mamit Setiawan assesses the change in nomenclature within the new organization in Pertamina, as the efforts of the Ministry of SOEs in making Pertamina more efficient and better.

Sub Holdings

The five sub-holding companies are upstream sub-holding whose operations are handed over by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE), gas sub-holding by PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN) Tbk, processing and petrochemical sub-holding by PT Kilang Pertamina International, electricity holding sub-companies and renewable energy by PT Pertamina Power Indonesia, PT Patra Niaga's commercial and marketing sub-holding, and shipping sub-holding by PT Pertamina International Shipping.

     Pertamina President Director Nicke Widyawati said that the transformation was carried out to prepare Pertamina's business lines to develop and be independent. Because at present Pertamina's business scope is very broad with different challenges and competitions and has specific risks of each.

"Therefore, with this sub-holding, every business can move faster and agile to develop world-class capabilities and business scale growth that will support Pertamina to become a leading global energy company with a market value of US $ 100 billion," said Nicke.

If you pay attention, the composition of Pertamina's sub-holding is not much different compared to that of other foreign oil and gas companies such as Petronas Malaysia and PTT Thailand. 

   In Petronas for example, there are 5 sub-holding companies including Upstream namely Petronas Carigali, International Business namely Petronas International Corporation, Downstream Business namely Petronas Chemical Group Berhad, Marketing, and Trading Business by Petronas Trading Corporation, and Power Business by Petronas Power. Regarding this matter, Mamit considers that there are indeed similarities with Petronas.

"Yes, I see it almost the same concept," he said.

He also agreed if one of the sub-holding conducted an IPO.

"Petronas has a shipping sub-holding named MISC Berhad and has an IPO and has now traveled everywhere," he said.

Another innovation made by the government and Pertamina is to place a number of young workers in strategic sub-holding positions. One of them, Mars Ega as Director of Business Planning and Development in the Commercial and Trading sub-holding. This 41-year-old young man said that this was a big challenge.

"But it must be realized that sooner or later a company needs regeneration, so what is more important is that every young worker must prepare well to become a successor to the company's management," he said.

He felt the benefits of Pertamina's talent development programs, especially in developing business and leadership competencies.

"This also shows that the company does not only look at the seniority side in the process of determining the position, hopefully, but this can also be an encouragement for other friends to make more achievements," he explained.

Investor Daily,  Page-12, Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Pertamina will Release PHE to the Stock Exchange

PT Pertamina (Persero) states that one of the sub holdings prepared to be offered to the public is upstream sub-holding which is operated by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE). This strategy is to increase the company's oil and gas production to be better.

PT Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE)

Pertamina President Director Nicke Widyawati said, in managing oil and gas blocks, the company usually also partners with other companies. The reason is, by working with other companies, oil and gas production can be more optimal. 

Nicke Widyawati

   In fact, to work on the Rokan Block, the government requires Pertamina to partner with other companies. This is also the basis for the company to prepare upstream sub-holding for the IPO.

"The first thing we will see [for IPO] is upstream sub-holding," said Nicke Widyawati.

Nicke Widyawati explained, many of the company's upstream assets still have the potential to be developed. However, the development of oil and gas blocks requires huge funding. In the future, around 60% of the company's total budget will be used to fund the upstream oil and gas project.

"So, later the funds obtained from the IPO will be used for upstream investment," Nicke said.

Upstream oil and gas investment, called Nicke Widyawati, is not limited to the upstream oil and gas assets owned by the company. Funds from the IPO will also be used to add new upstream oil and gas assets.

"Our IPO will use the funds for the upstream acquisition," said Nicke Widyawati.

At the end of last year, the company had budgeted funds for the acquisition of oil and gas blocks of US $ 150 million this year. Although it is not yet certain which block is targeted, the company is eyeing assets in Africa and the Middle East.

Energy observers from Trisakti University Pri Agung Rakhmanto rate, the IPO step is very good to improve corporate governance, because it must be more open. IPO is also good to be able to raise funds from third parties (public).

"For Pertamina's upstream, which does require strengthening funds for investment, this is positive. When it comes to performance, that's another thing, it also depends on how to run the company, "he said.

Regarding Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution which states that production branches which are important for the State and which control the lives of many people are controlled by the State, according to him, it does not become an issue if the IPO does not relinquish the majority of share ownership.

"As long as the majority shares are still in the country, in my opinion, more positive," said Pri Agung.

He added Pertamina was not the first oil and gas BUMN to be listed on the exchange. At present, there are already many other state-owned oil and gas companies listed on the stock exchange, such as Petrobras which is a Brazilian oil and gas BUMN, Petronas Malaysia, YPF Argentina, Statoil Norway, and Saudi Aramco Saudi Arabia.

Management of Oil and Gas Blocks

In addition to the IPO plan, Pertamina is also restructuring its oil and gas block management. Nicke explained, after the sub-holding was formed, the management of the oil and gas block would be done by region. Previously, despite being in one area, the management of the oil and gas block was carried out by a different subsidiary. For example in Sumatra, there are oil and gas blocks managed by PHE and PT Pertamina EP.

"We think this should be managed in synergy and coordination, so there can be efficiency. For this reason, under the sub-holding [oil and gas block] is managed in a way regionalization, "explained Nicke Widyawati.

In this way, all resources and equipment procurement can be synergized. All this time due to being separate, procurement of tools such as rigs has become difficult and long. This is because among subsidiaries scrambling to find rigs, while the number of rigs in the market is limited. 

    Other parties are also reluctant to increase the number of rigs because the company's procurement contracts tend to be short-term. These problems have become one of the causes of exploration and achievement of upstream oil and gas production below the target.

"This is how we manage all assets more efficiently and at the same time, improve our products and services," said Nicke.

It also wants to encourage investment in rig procurement in the country. Under the upstream sub-holding, there are several subsidiaries that will work on Pertamina's oil and gas blocks in certain areas. 

    Precisely, Pertamina EP will manage the company's oil and gas block in Java, PT Pertamina Hulu Indonesia will work on upstream oil and gas assets in Kalimantan, Pertamina EP Cepu (PEPC) will handle oil and gas working areas in Eastern Indonesia, and PT Pertamina International EP continues to manage oil and gas blocks outside the country.

Dwi Seotjipto

Head of the Special Task Force for Upstream Oil and Gas Business Activities (SKK Migas) Dwi Seotjipto said, his party would see Pertamina's explanation of organizational changes in upstream sub-holding, mainly related to the authority of each operator in Pertamina's oil and gas block. The reason is that the Production Sharing Contract / PSC signed by the government is the company that is the operator.

Blogger Agus Purnomo in SKK Migas

"With the sub-holding, we will later see its authority in investment as well as the implementation and operation of the oil and gas block concerned," Dwi Seotjipto said.

Regarding the implementation of the contract, this depends on the bureaucracy established by Pertamina in the presence of this sub-holding. If the bureaucracy and decision-making are simpler, and the authority of the oil and gas block operator can be supported, there will be no problems.

"Hopefully it is better, the important thing is that the bureaucracy is not long, so the investment step is faster," Dwi said.

Investor Daily,  Page-10, Tuesday, June 16, 2020

SKK Migas Accelerates Three Oil and Gas Projects

The Special Task Force for Upstream Oil and Gas Business Activities (SKK Migas) accelerated the operational schedule of the three national upstream oil and gas projects to this year at the time of mobility restrictions due to Covid-19. The three projects will increase oil production by 3,000 barrels per day and gas by 5 million cubic feet per day / MMSCFD.

SKK Migas Deputy for Operations Julius Wiratno said the three oil and gas projects were the development of the Big Bamboo Project and the construction of the Sembakung gas compressor facility by PT Pertamina EP, and the reactivation of the PHE-12 platform by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi West Madura Offshore (PHE-WMO). These three projects should only be completed next year.

Blogger Agus Purnomo in PHE-WMO

"But these projects can be completed by 2020," he said.

He explained the Big Bamboo Block Project would produce gas of 3 mmscfd. At present, the project is still in the stage of working on the engineering, procurement, and construction / EPC package and will go on stream in the third quarter of this year. While reactivation of the PHE-12 platform is an improvement activity that was skewed in 2017 ago.

This project is targeted to be realized later this year and can produce oil of 3,000 BPD. Furthermore, the Sembakung compressor project is also scheduled to be completed by the end of 2020 and will produce 2 MMSCFD of gas.

"The success in accelerating the realization of the upstream oil and gas project when the mobility restrictions in the context of Covid-19 mitigation shows the determination and enthusiasm of the upstream oil and gas people to be able to implement the program agreed in the Work Program and Budget (WP&B) 2020 optimally and efficiently," said Julius.

Julius also revealed that the Meliwis Block Project undertaken by Ophir Indonesia (Madura Offshore) will be completed and start operating this July. This project will produce a gas of 20 MMSCFD.

Dwi Soetjipto

The Head of SKK Migas, Dwi Soetjipto appreciated the innovations made by his ranks with the cooperation contract contractors (KKKS) so as to produce an acceleration of projects in the field. He continues to coordinate with KKKS to ensure that the upstream oil and gas project can run well according to schedule.

"During the Covid-19 outbreak, SKK Migas was able to accelerate the implementation of the completion of three projects," he said.

According to him, if the upstream oil and gas project can run well, there will be an increase in the production and production of oil and gas lifting. In addition, the oil and gas project is also able to move the regional economy and create jobs, especially the community around the project site.

"This is in line with the Government's focus on being able to encourage the economy to move during the Covid-19 outbreak," he added.

Dwi acknowledged the Covid-19 outbreak and the still low oil prices were a real test for efforts to realize the oil production target of 1 million BPD in 2030. One of the important keys to achieving the target was how to keep the project going well on schedule.

The success in accelerating the project was due to the successful implementation of the 2 pillars of the SKK Migas transformation, namely the Integrated Operation Center (IOC) and One Door Service Policy (ODSP).

Previously, four oil and gas projects were operating. First, the Grati Pressure Lowering Project in East Java was undertaken by Ophir Indonesia (Sampang) Pty and produced 30 MMSCFD of gas. Then, the development of the Randugunting Field by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE) Randugunting in Central Java provided additional production of 5 MMSCFD.

Furthermore, the Buntal-5 Field by Medco E&P Natuna Ltd provides additional gas production of 45 MMSCFD. Finally, Sembakung Power Plant by PT Pertamina EP with a capacity of 4 MW to support upstream oil and gas operations in the East Kalimantan region.

Blogger Agus Purnomo in Petronas Carigali Ketapang II Ltd.

In 2020, SKK Migas targets 11 upstream oil and gas projects to be onstream. Another project scheduled to operate this year is Bukit Tua Phase-3 with an estimated production of 31.5 MMSCFD by Petronas Carigali Ketapang II Ltd. planned to begin operations in the first quarter of last year.

Blogger Agus Purnomo in Petronas Carigali Ketapang II Ltd.

Furthermore, besides Meliwis, two projects will operate in the second quarter, namely the 15 MMSCFD Betung Compressor by PT Pertamina EP, Malacca Strait Phase-1 3,000 BPH by EMP Malacca Strait.

In the third quarter of 2020, there were three oil and gas projects scheduled to operate. These three projects are the 2.4 mmscfd Beauty Project by PT Sele Raya Belida, the LP-MP SKG-19 150 MMSCFD Compressor by PT Pertamina EP, and Peciko 8A 8 MMSCFD by PT Pertamina Hulu Mahakam.

Finally, the Merakes Project by ENI Indonesia is scheduled to begin production in the fourth quarter of 2020. The peak production of the Merakes Field is estimated to reach 60,305 barrels of oil equivalent per day / BOEPD. In 2020, national oil and gas lifting was set at 1.95 million BOEPD, up slightly from last year's 1.8 million boepd realization. 

the Merakes Project by ENI Indonesia

    Specifically, oil production rose to 755 thousand BPH from the realization of 746 thousand BPH, and gas to 1.19 million BOEPD from the realization of 1.06 million BOEPD.

Investor Daily, Page-10, Thursday, June 4, 2020

The government is advised to invite oil and gas junior companies

The government is advised to invite junior companies (small companies) that focus on oil and gas exploration activities. This is because the discovery of significant oil and gas reserves is the key to achieving the target of producing 1 million barrels of oil per day (BPD) by 2030. 

       Practitioners of Oil and Gas Tumbur Parlindungan revealed that large oil and gas companies rarely voluntarily disburse large funds for large-scale exploration activities. This can be seen from the lack of large oil and gas companies participating in the management of new oil and gas blocks through auctions held by the government.

For this reason, he advised the government to invite junior companies to look for potential oil and gas reserves in the country. This is because, in the world, junior companies usually focus on finding oil and gas reserves to be sold to large oil and gas companies. He gave an example, the discovery of large gas at Tangguh was actually carried out by Arco. However, BP, which is now the operator there, acquired the company.

"We need to invite small companies but want to take exploration risks. We need pioneers who want to drill, we need players who want to play exploration, big companies focus above 100 million barrels and above, "said Tumbur.

According to him, data on oil and gas reserves owned by Indonesia are currently difficult to compete with other regions. At present, large oil and gas companies are actually targeting Africa, which has proven oil and gas reserves in large quantities. This will only happen in Indonesia if there are 11 proven huge oil and gas reserves.

"The company will come if the reserves are proven large," said Tumbur.

Tumbur explained, large companies such as Shell, Chevron, Exxon, and Total would not be interested in oil and gas reserves whose volumes were less than 100 million barrels of oil equivalent. 

Furthermore, companies such as HESS, ConocoPhillips, and National Oil Company (NOC) such as Petronas, PTTEP Thailand, Repsol, will only glance at one area if the reserves are more than 50 million barrels of oil equivalent. 

In fact, he continued, the flow of foreign investment funds is very important so that exploration activities can run massively in Indonesia.

Blogger Agus Purnomo in Petronas PC Ketapang

"We see that our oil and gas block auction is not very large, so it will not be in demand by large companies," he said.

Repsol

On the other hand, the success of finding oil and gas reserves (success ratio) in Indonesia is still less than 50%. This could also be an obstacle to achieving the 1 million BPD oil production target. He gave an example, the findings of oil and gas in Ande-Ande Lumut could be one of the big findings, but the problem of monetization and the use of technology could hamper its development.

Referring to the data of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), the number of the signing of production sharing contracts (PSCs) from oil and gas block auction results has been relatively low since 2015. In 2015, the government signed 8 PSCs. But afterward, although the auction was still held, in 2016-2017, not a single PSC was signed. Furthermore, as many as 11 PSCs were signed in 2018 and 6 PSCs last year. In fact, the signing of the PSC in Indonesia touched 26 contracts in 2011.

Inline, the realization of national oil and gas exploration investment has also been relatively low since 2015. In 2015, the realization of exploration investment was recorded to still reach the US $ 970 million. However, this exploration investment continues to decline to the US $ 916.2 million in 2016, US $ 576.55 million in 2017, and rose to the US $ 786.18 million in 2018. In fact, exploration investment in Indonesia once touched the US $ 3, 05 billion in 2013.

Must be planned

Another strategy from the government to reach the target of 1 million BPD is through enhanced oil recovery (EOR) activities. According to Tumbur, this EOR activity must be planned from the beginning in the development of an oil and gas block. The reason is that EOR activities will not be effective and will require large costs if they are only carried out when the oil and gas reserves of an oil and gas block are almost gone.

"During the decline, the energy strategy has been lost. If it was only EOR at that time, the cost was more expensive. EOR continues improvement, there are pilots from the start. If it's already [production] road it's difficult to run, "said Tumbur.

The Special Task Force for Upstream Oil and Gas Business Activities (SKK Migas) once made an additional projection of oil production from EOR activities. Referring to the projection, the newly initiated EOR activities can significantly increase oil production starting in 2025. Referring to the data, national oil production is projected to only be 281 thousand BPD by 2030 if no EOR activities are carried out. However, if the EOR is successfully implemented, oil production can be bent to 520 thousand BPD that year.

However, at present, the EOR activities are still in the pilot phase. PT Pertamina (Persero) through Pertamina EP has implemented EOR in Tanjung Field. The company has also signed the points of understanding between Pertamina and Repsol for full-scale management, including the implementation of surfactant-polymer EOR. In the Jirak and Rantau Fields, Pertamina is conducting a study of the application of surfactant chemicals for the implementation of EOR in both fields.

Furthermore, related to CO2 flooding, Pertamina is currently conducting studies in several fields, namely Jatibarang, Sukowati, and Ramba. Pertamina also expanded this EOR activity to the oil and gas block managed by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE), namely in the North West Java Offshore Block, precisely in the Zulu Field and E-Main. In addition, in the near future the Batang field, which is operated by PHE Siak, will be an EOR steam flooding pilot project.

Investor Daily, Page-9, Thursday, May 9, 2020