Exxon, Pertamina, PetroChina to jointly tap Java field

Exxon, Pertamina, PetroChina to jointly tap Java field Exxon, Pertamina, PetroChina to jointly tap Java field

Bloomberg, Jakarta

Indonesian oil regulator BPMigas said state oil company PT Pertamina, PetroChina Co., China's largest oil producer, and Exxon Mobil Corp. are to jointly operate an East Java oilfield.

BPMigas had ordered Pertamina and PetroChina to stop test drilling in the Sukowati field because the two companies were operating without the approval of Exxon Mobil, owner of 85 percent of the area's reserves. Exxon Mobil, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, today said it does not object to the two companies operating in the field.

Most of the Sukowati field's reserves, estimated at 26 million barrels, lie in the Cepu block, owned by Exxon Mobil, while the remaining 15 percent is in the adjacent Tuban block, which is jointly owned by Pertamina and PetroChina.

"Starting now, the production at the Sukowati field in Tuban will be conducted jointly by the three companies," Zanial Achmad, deputy of planning at BPMigas told reporters in Jakarta.

A formal agreement on how to proceed with drilling should be drawn up in the next two months. "We'll discuss the split between the companies later," Zanial said.

The Indonesian government expects Sukowati field, which is currently producing about 7,000 barrels a day, to produce between 10,000 barrels and 15,000 barrels a day once a formal agreement between the three companies is in place, Zanial said.