Indonesia's Giant Masela Gas Block to Hold Groundbreaking Tomorrow

The Indonesian government is scheduled to inaugurate the groundbreaking of the giant Abadi gas project in the Masela Block, located in the Arafura Sea, Maluku, on Thursday, 16 July 2026. The ceremony will be attended by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.

Head of SKK Migas Djoko Siswanto previously stated that preparations are being finalised ahead of the event. Coordination is being carried out with various parties, including the committee led by the Commander of the Pattimura Regional Military Command.

‘We are currently coordinating with the Chairman of the Masela Project Groundbreaking Committee, the Pangdam Patimura, at Soekarno-Hatta Airport. Logistics from Soekarno-Hatta Airport are currently in the process of being shipped to the Saumlaki location in Maluku,’ Djoko said in a written statement last week.

According to him, the total logistics shipped reached approximately 93 tonnes, consisting of tents, carpets, generators, air conditioners and various other supporting equipment. Some of the logistics were sent by sea. Preparations at the site are also ongoing, tailored to the event design for the President’s attendance.

Inpex Masela Ltd holds the largest participating interest in the Masela Block at 65 percent. Shell Upstream Overseas Services previously held a 35 percent stake but decided to exit the project. Since July 2023, Shell’s 35 percent stake has been taken over by PT Pertamina Hulu Energi through its subsidiary PT Pertamina Hulu Energi Masela with a 20 percent share, and Petronas with 15 percent. The sale and purchase agreement was signed on 25 July 2023, and the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources’ approval for the transfer was obtained on 4 October 2023.

The Abadi field in the Masela Block is a deep-water gas field with the largest gas reserves in Indonesia, located about 160 kilometres off the coast of Yamdena Island in the Arafura Sea at depths of 400-800 metres. The gas potential from the Abadi field is estimated at 6.97 trillion cubic feet.

After the production sharing contract was signed in 1998, Inpex discovered the giant gas reserves in the Masela Block in 2000. Nineteen years later, the Indonesian government approved the first Plan of Development for Inpex to produce 9.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG, 150 million standard cubic feet per day of pipeline gas, and 35,000 barrels per day of condensate.

The green field development concept, which involves high complexity and significant risk, includes deep-water drilling, subsea facilities, a floating production storage and offloading unit, and an onshore LNG plant. This will be a challenge and a major opportunity for Pertamina Hulu Energi and its partners, with the potential to absorb up to 10,000 workers.

The Masela Block is also planned to produce clean energy through the implementation of Carbon Capture and Storage technology to support the government’s programme to reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainability in the energy transition era. The Indonesian government approved the CCS implementation on 28 November 2023 through Revision 2 of the first Plan of Development, followed by a FEED tender. Inpex launched the onshore LNG FEED on Wednesday, 9 April 2025.