Bakrie trims Iran stake

Bakrie trims Iran stake

NICOSIA (Reuters): Canada's Bow Valley Energy Ltd, planning a
buy-back contract to develop an Iranian oilfield, has been told
by its Indonesian partner that it would no longer be able to
finance the project as planned, the Middle East Economic Survey
(MEES) reported on Monday.

MEES said that the Indonesian currency crisis had prompted
Bakrie Minarak Petroleum to pare its financial commitment for the
development of the 40,000 barrels per day (bpd) Balal offshore
oil field in Iran.

"The Indonesian firm had been expected to put up all of the
$152 million or so needed to support the capital costs of the
master development plan," the newsletter said.

"While Bakrie is likely to lessen its obligations in respect
of Balal considerably, negotiations are still underway to sort
out the extent of this reduction," it added.

The newsletter said Bow Valley is in the process of
identifying other firms which might be interested in joining the
project on a joint-venture basis.