Japex will not buy stake in Timor Gap<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Japanese oil company Japan Petroleum Exploration
\nCo. (Japex) had no plans to invest in the development of a depot
\nin Timor Gap in return for a stake in the project, a company
\nofficial said yesterday.<\/p>\n
The official refuted a statement by PT El Nusa president Aswad
\nDipo claiming that Japex had showed an interest in injecting
\nfunds into the depot project located in Kupang, East
\nNusatenggara, in return for a 20 percent stake.<\/p>\n
El Nusa, a subsidiary of Indonesia's state oil company
\nPertamina, had shelved the US$9.1 million depot project owing to
\ninsufficient funds, Aswad said Thursday in a hearing with the
\nHouse of Representatives Commission V for mines and energy.<\/p>\n
According to Aswad, a group of local banks initially agreed to
\nfinance the project but could only supply $4.8 million due to the
\nmonetary crisis.<\/p>\n
El Nusa put the project's development on hold in April this
\nyear when the depot was already 80 percent complete.<\/p>\n
\"We heard that El Nusa's depot project was put on hold due to
\nfinancial difficulties, but we haven't considered financially
\nparticipating in the project,\" the Japex official was quoted by
\nDow Jones as saying in Tokyo.<\/p>\n
Under an exclusive negotiation right for the Savo block in the
\nTimor Sea awarded in May 1997 by Pertamina, Japex has been
\nconducting seismic explorations and reprocessing, and then
\nevaluating the geological data on the block.<\/p>\n
\"As we've done two seismic drillings so far, we are currently
\nreprocessing the data with a target date to complete evaluation
\nat the end of this year,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The oil and gas-rich Timor Gap, located in the Timor Sea
\nseparating Timor island and Australia, is co-owned by the
\nIndonesian and Australian governments.<\/p>\n
Aswad said that El Nusa's depot project in Kupang was aimed at
\ncompeting with oil and gas logistical depots in Darwin,
\nAustralia.<\/p>\n
Separately, another Japanese oil developer, Indonesia
\nPetroleum Ltd. (Inpex) has also been conducting seismic
\nexplorations in the Rabe block in the Timor Gap where the company
\nwas awarded a production-sharing contract by Pertamina.<\/p>\n
\"Because our (Timor) project is still in the seismic drilling
\nstage, we aren't yet interested in securing depot space, nor in
\ninvesting in the depot development project,\" an Inpex official
\nsaid. (jsk)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/japex-will-not-buy-stake-in-timor-gap-1447893297",
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