Govt plans decree on oil, gas sector

Govt plans decree on oil, gas sector

JAKARTA: The government will only decide on the proposed
extension of oil and gas contracts here after a special decree on
the upstream oil and gas industry has been issued, Minister of
Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said on Monday.

He said that the decree would provide a legal basis for future
government policy in the sector.

He declined to state what the content of the decree would be
as it was still being deliberated.

It is also still not clear when the government would issue the
decree, thus creating uncertainty for oil and gas production
sharing contractors who have proposed contract extensions.

Anglo-American oil and gas giant BP Plc. has proposed the
extension of its contract in managing the Kangean gas block in
East Java, which will expire in 2010. -- JP