ExxonMobil sells stake in Indonesia blocks
ExxonMobil has sold a 20% share in two offshore exploration blocks in Indonesia to Malaysia's state oil company Petronas, an official at the country's energy watchdog said today.
ExxonMobil is the operator of the offshore Surumana and Mandar blocks in the Makassar Strait.
"ExxonMobil wants to share the burden of the exploration," said the official at the energy watchdog, known as BPMIGAS, to Reuters.
The official, who declined to be identified, did not give any financial details.
Maman Budiman, a senior vice president at ExxonMobil Indonesia, confirmed the company was co-operating with Petronas over the blocks, but declined to elaborate.
"ExxonMobil holds an 80% stake now in both Surumana and Mandar blocks. We are still conducting exploration in both deepwater blocks," Budiman said.
Indonesia awarded ExxonMobil the exploration rights in Surumana block in 2006 and the Mandar block in 2007.
Indonesia has turned into a net importer of crude oil in recent years as production has slumped after a failure to tap new fields fast enough.
The country has been offering new exploration rights and financial incentives for oil fields in a bid to stem a steady decline in production.