CPC exits oil, gas industry

CPC exits oil, gas industry

HONG KONG (Dow Jones): Taiwan's Chinese Petroleum Corp. (Q.CPC) has exited Indonesia's upstream oil and gas sector, after deciding in June to halt exploratory drilling in the Peudada field in North Sumatra, a CPC spokesman told Dow Jones Newswires yesterday.

In June, the offshore field, jointly owned by Mobil Corp. of the U.S. (MOB) and Indonesia's state-owned oil and gas concern Pertamina was deemed non-commercial and drilling was halted, the spokesman said.

"We evaluated the Peudada area and we thought that it is a high-risk area," said the spokesman, although surveys of the offshore field had found an undisclosed amount of oil and gas. He denied a local report that CPC's decision was based on fears over political and social unrest in Indonesia.

The Peudada field was CPC's only investment in Indonesia's upstream oil and gas sector, the spokesman said, and the Taiwanese company has no plans at this time to invest in other upstream activities.