Riau oil pipelining halted

Riau oil pipelining halted

JAKARTA (JP): State oil and gas company Pertamina said on
Thursday it lacked funds to build a new oil pipeline in Lirik,
Riau, to replace the damaged one currently in place.

Company spokesman Toto Suparto said the pipeline, used to
transport crude oil from the oil fields in the area to
Pertamina's oil terminal in Buatan, Riau, was too old to function
properly. He said Pertamina lacked the resources to develop a new
pipeline in the area.

Constructed 43 years ago, the 160-kilometer pipeline stopped
functioning in December 1998, forcing oil companies in the area,
including publicly listed oil company PT Medco Energy
Corporation, to suspend operations.

Before interruption of its operation, Medco produced 3,500
barrels of oil per day.

"Pertamina has spent Rp 5 billion repairing the old pipeline
over the past six months, but thus far, the pipeline remains out
of order," Toto told The Jakarta Post.

Toto said Pertamina was still trying to repair the old
pipeline, but he could not give a timeframe for completion of the
work.(jsk)