Oil Production in Rokan Block Drops at Start of Year, PHR Explains

PT Pertamina Hulu Rokan (PHR) has revealed the causes behind the persistently low oil production in the Rokan Block, Riau, during the early part of 2026. According to SKK Migas records, as of May 2026, the realised oil lifting in the Rokan Block was recorded at 131,040 barrels per day (bpd), representing approximately 80% of the target set in the 2026 State Budget (APBN) of 163,859 bpd.

PHR President Director Muhamad Arifin explained that the low production at the start of the year was influenced by several operational disruptions, ranging from gas supply interruptions to electrical constraints. He noted that gas supplies to the Rokan Block were disrupted due to a rupture in a pipeline owned by PT Transportasi Gas Indonesia (TGI) between 2 January and 2 February 2026, which impacted field production operations.

‘Regarding those issues, they have been resolved, and currently, PHR Rokan is able to receive gas supplies according to its requirements,’ Arifin stated during a Hearing with Commission XII of the House of Representatives (DPR RI) on Wednesday (3/6/2026).

In addition to the gas supply disruption, PHR has also faced electrical sector challenges since late 2025, affecting several production facilities in the field. Consequently, the company is currently working alongside PLN to complete repairs on generators at the MCTN facility. He expressed hope that the repair process would be completed and the electrical system would return to normal by mid-July 2026.

‘Currently, our year-to-date production in Rokan is at 131,000 barrels of oil per day, and God willing, it is prognosticated that everything will run smoothly. We hope that this year we can produce up to 144,000 barrels of oil per day,’ he added.

Previously, during the same session, the Special Task Force for Upstream Oil and Gas Business Activities (SKK Migas) disclosed the reasons behind the low realised oil production at the start of the year, citing several contributing factors. The Head of SKK Migas, Djoko Siswanto, stated that the low realisation was influenced by operational disruptions. For instance, in the first quarter, a leak in a pipeline owned by PT Transportasi Gas Indonesia (TGI) impacted seven contractors (KKKS) at the Dumai Terminal and two gas suppliers.

‘If we look at the production realisation graph, January was very low because a pipeline rupture caused production for seven KKKS to temporarily halt,’ said Djoko.

Following the resolution of those disruptions, production had increased. However, new challenges emerged in the second quarter, including electrical disruptions within the PT Pertamina Hulu Rokan (PHR) working area and a decline in production at the Banyu Urip Field in the Rokan Block, operated by ExxonMobil Cepu Ltd.

‘After that, there was an electrical problem in PHR, followed by a production decline in Banyu Urip, where these two oil and gas blocks serve as the largest pillars of our national production,’ he said.

It is noted that the realised production of saleable oil, or national oil lifting, as of 31 May 2026, reached 576.2 thousand barrels per day (bpd). This figure consists of oil production of 491.3 thousand bpd, condensate of 55.8 thousand bpd, and NGL of 29.1 thousand bpd. This figure remains lower than this year’s lifting target, which is set at 610 thousand bpd. Pertamina Hulu Rokan remains ranked as the largest oil producer in Indonesia.