ExxonMobil proposes Indonesia uptick

ExxonMobil Cepu has submitted a request to increase production from the like-named block in East Java, the local subsidiary’s vice-president for public and government affairs Erwin Maryoto said late on Thursday.

Exxon’s proposal for 2017 is to raise Cepu output from 185,000 bopd to 200,000 bopd, which has all but been accepted by upstream regulator SKKMigas, according to Maryoto. It will only require an environmental impact analysis by the Environment and Forestry Ministry. “We don’t see this as something critical since there should not be any environmental impact because there will be no construction of new facilities,” Maryoto was quoted as saying by local media.

Indonesia is targeting an output of 815,000 bopd for 2017, down from previous projections of 820,000 bopd. Total E&P Indonesia will also reduce production, scaling from 64,000 bopd to 53,000 bopd.

In other news, Co-ordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan this week tried to dispel rumours that Japan’s Inpex would walk out of its Masela production-sharing contract (PSC). The area contains the Abadi gasfield and is the pillar under the onshore Abadi LNG project. The government and Inpex are reportedly in talks on a new contract that would extend beyond the duration of the existing PSC, which ends in 2028. The minister wants to conclude the negotiations by mid-2017 to ensure work can get underway by 2019.

Elsewhere in the archipelago, in North Sumatra, Renco Elang and partner Lion Energy will spud a well on the Amanah Timur prospect. Planned for December 12, it will be drilled to 530 metres. Recoverable reserves are estimated at 4.7 million barrels of oil and condensate. Amanah Timur is also believed to hold 127 mcm (4.5 bcm) in natural gas reserves.