Devon halts production as workers? strike continues

US independent Devon Energy has been forced to temporarily halted production activities at the company?s Salawati oil field, Papua after some 200 workers refused to end their strike against the company, Kompas daily reported on Saturday.

Pertamina?s spokesman Sidick Nitikusumah confirmed on Friday that Devon, one of the state oil and gas company?s production sharing contractors, had stopped its production activities at the Salawati oil field for the last two days as the workers continued their protests.

Sidick?s statement clarified the confusing statement made earlier by Devon Energy's spokesperson Erwin Lebe, who said early this week that the workers? strike did not affect production activities at the Salawati oil field.

Some 200 workers at the company?s operation unit in the Salawati oil field went on a strike on Tuesday due to the company?s refusal to give them a "transitional" compensation from the recent sale of the company?s assets including the Salawati oil field to PetroChina.

According Sidick, although the so-called transitional compensation was not common, the management of Devon was still studying the workers? demand to ensure that the company could resume its production activities.

Devon, which produces 11,000 barrels of crude oil per day from the Salawati oil field, has halted the crude oil supply to the Kasim oil refinery plant in Sorong, Papua.

"If the workers? strike continued, it would severely affect the operation of the refinery plant, which relies on the crude supply from the Salawati oil field for its operation," Sidick said. He added that the refinery plant still has crude oil stock for a few days.

Sidick said that if the existing crude oil stocks had finished, the refinery plant had no choice but to stop its activities. (*)