Pertamina drills new oil well

State oil and gas firm PT Pertamina, through its eastern Java unit, has been drilling a new oil well in Trembul, Ngawen, Blora, Central Java, since Sept. 15.

As of Wednesday evening, a depth of 303 meters had been drilled. At the 500-meter mark, geologists will be able to ascertain whether the well holds oil reserves, Jufri, who is in charge of drilling, said.

Oil exploration in the area -- which is on the border of Central Java and East Java -- began in 1860 by the Dutch colonials.

The drilling activities cost Pertamina about US$5,500 per day -- much cheaper than exploration costs for offshore activities, which on average cost about $40,000 to $50,000 per day, public relations officer Anggadewi Widyastuti told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday evening.

Pertamina is in dire need of finding new sources of oil, with the country importing hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil -- both crude and refined -- to meet the rising domestic fuel consumption demand.

The country's oil production has been declining over the past few years by an average of more than 5 percent, due in part to aging facilities and a lack of investment to build new ones. -- JP/Suherdjoko