Exxon evaluates proposed higher production of Banyu Urip field

By Godang Sitompul

ExxonMobil Indonesia said that it is still evaluating a recent request from Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Ignasius Jonan for higher production at the Banyu Urip field in Cepu block, East Java Province.

?Exxon is evaluating the capacity of the production facility and the capacity of the existing wells,? said Erwin Maryoto, Vice President of Public and Government Affairs at ExxonMobil Indonesia, operator of the block, to Petromindo.com on Friday, but did not say when the evaluation process will be completed.

Jonan has asked ExxonMobil Corp to increase production at Banyu Urip to around 300,000 bpd from an earlier target of 200,000 bpd. Jonan made the request at a meeting last month with ExxonMobil Senior Vice President Mark W. Albers as part of a three-day US visit.

But Deputy Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Arcandra Tahar apparently has a different view. He said that the Cepu block production facility is designed up to only 200,000 bpd capacity, and that much higher production would shorten the production lifetime of the field.

He said that the proposed 300,000 bpd production target should be properly evaluated.

ExxonMobil through subsidiary ExxonMobil Cepu Limited (EMCL) is the operator of the Cepu block.

Elsewhere, Nurdin, Head of the Banyu Urip operation told Petromindo.com that production at the field has now reached 200,000 bpd.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak