New oil blocks on offer

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government said it would offer 17 oil and gas exploration blocks mainly located in eastern Indonesia through an open tender next year.

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said that the proposition included six blocks located in the Arafua Sea, two blocks on the Seram islands, three blocks in the Makassar Straits off the coast of Sulawesi, and one block off the coast of East Kalimantan, one block in West Natuna and three onshore blocks in Kalimantan and Sulawesi.

He did not mention the location of the last block.

"All information and related documents will be available on Feb. 1," he said on Tuesday.

He didn't provide a time frame for the tender.

Purnomo said he was optimistic that the country's oil and gas industry would remain attractive to investors because many blocks had not yet been explored.

Elsewhere, Purnomo said the government had approved 12 oil and gas block contracts this year.

These included nine new production sharing contracts (PSCs), one technical assistance contract and two renewed PSC contracts.

Total investment was expected to reach US$5.4 billion this year, with $900 million of the investment earmarked for exploration activity, Purnomo said.

"During the last five years, total investments have reached $22 billion from 74 oil and gas exploration block contracts," Purnomo said, adding that investment for exploration reached about $2 billion.

Indonesia produced about 1.2 million barrels of oil per day this year.