House Member Confident Pertamina Can Play Major Role in Masela Block

A member of the Indonesian House of Representatives Commission XII, Sartono Hutomo, has expressed confidence that Pertamina, through its upstream sub-holding PHE, can play a major role in managing the giant Masela Block project. His remarks came in response to the groundbreaking of the Masela Block Abadi Field National Strategic Project (PSN) in Maluku by President Prabowo Subianto last week, marking a new phase for the project after its initial contract was signed in 1998.

Sartono stated that PHE’s participation should not be merely symbolic. “PHE has the potential to make a significant contribution because it has experience managing national upstream oil and gas projects,” he said in Jakarta on Monday. He emphasised that PHE’s 20 percent participating interest must deliver added value, particularly through increasing the Domestic Component Level (TKDN), involving national industries, transferring technology, and controlling the costs of the project, which has an investment value of 20.94 billion US dollars.

Sartono also noted that PHE possesses competent human resources capable of developing the technical, environmental, and commercial aspects of the project. He stressed that the main challenge lies in maintaining environmental sustainability while ensuring the project remains competitive in the global Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) market, making the strengthening of technological collaboration and governance crucial.

Meanwhile, Satya Widya Yudha, a member of the National Energy Council (DEN), also assessed that Pertamina’s involvement through PHE in the Masela Block could boost national oil and gas production. The Abadi Masela Block LNG project is a National Strategic Project (PSN) with gas reserve potential reaching 18.54 trillion cubic feet (TCF) and an LNG production capacity of 9.5 million tonnes per year. Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia previously stated that the project is expected to contribute state revenues of up to 37.8 billion US dollars, with indirect tax contributions estimated at around 6.43 billion US dollars.