Arun returns to normal, villagers back home

The Acehnese villagers that live around the Arun gas field in North Aceh operated by PT ExxonMobil Oil Indonesia (EMOI) have went back to their homes on Sunday as the firm had fixed its broken gas pipeline, a senior official at upstream authority BP Migas said on Sunday.

?Production at Arun returned to normal on Saturday. All villagers have returned to their respective home today (Sunday),? BP Migas operation deputy Trijana Kartoatmodjo said.

Hundreds of residents of North Aceh regency took refuge away from their homes since Wednesday after a leak in the gas pipeline that passes through their villages.

The leak in the gas pipeline took place between Cluster-3 and Cluster-4 in the Arun field, some 30 kilometers east of Lhokseumawe, the capital of North Aceh regency.

A resident who requested anonymity said that he smelled an unpleasant odor from the pipeline and immediately reported the leak to a security guard at the Arun gas field.

The news of the gas leak quickly spread through the area and sparked panic among the residents, who then fled their homes.

EMOI has that the leak was in a condensate pipeline and would not pose danger to the people or the environment. It however asked some families living nearby to relocate to temporary accommodations provided by the firm as a precautionary measure.

Following the incident, Arun?s gas production fell by approximately 300 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) to temporary shut down at Cluster 3 and 4 but the production has returned to normal on Saturday.

Trijana assured the incident would not impact the LNG shipment schedule from the Arun LNG plant in Lhokseumawe, where EMOI send all its gas. (Godang)