Pertamina 'needs Natuna help'
Indonesia's Pertamina will look for another international partner to develop the huge Natuna gas field if the government terminates ExxonMobil's contract next year, its chief said today.
"We would have to look for another partner - it's difficult gas and requires a huge amount of funds," Ari Soemarno, the state-run producer's president told reuters.
Indonesia's Energy Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said this week the government might take over Natuna when ExxonMobil's contract expires in January, unless the supermajor starts development.
Exxon has a 76% stake in D-Alpha while Pertamina has 24%.
"We are working with ExxonMobil and we hope we can monetise the reserve in not too long a time," Soemarno said.
The Natuna D-Alpha block contains around 222 trillion cubic feet of gas, of which 46 Tcf is thought to be commercially recoverable, but the field contains about 70% carbon dioxide, making it expensive to develop and difficult to sell.
Analysts said Pertamina might be unlikely to terminate the Natuna contract so soon after a five-year row with ExxonMobil over operatorship of the $2.6 billion Cepu oilfield, resolved in March.
"The government still expects us to start production (on Cepu) by 2009, but with the present situation on equipment delivery and contractor loads there may be some delays," Soemarno said.