Exspan demanded to compensate villagers for rice field damages
Tuesday, August 20 2002 - 02:59 AM WIB
South Sumatra farmers have demanded compensation from oil producer PT Exspan Nusantara, a unit of publicly listed oil company PT. Medco Energy International, whose oil drilling activities allegedly had caused damages to their rice fields, local daily Palembang Post reported.
Dozens of people from Kayuara village in Musi Banyuasin (Muba) regency, South Sumatra on Monday came to the Muba regency council and expressed their complaints to council members. They said Exspan had used dynamites to drill new oil wells in their village, and the drilling method had damaged their rice fields and had cracked their houses.
The villagers complained that rice harvest in their area would drop due to the damages.
The villagers asked council members to press Exspan to compensate them for the damages.
Exspan has been in operation in South Sumatra for more than 10 years. (*)