Fishermen block PETRONAS seismic vessel offshore Sampang
Monday, October 20 2025 - 08:06 AM WIB
Around 100 fishing boats surrounded and forced a vessel owned by Malaysia’s PETRONAS to halt its exploration and 3D seismic survey activities at the Hidayah field in the North Madura II Working Area, offshore Ketapang, Sampang Regency, East Java, on Friday (Oct 17).
The protest began around noon when local fishermen demanded the PETRONAS vessel stop operating in the northern coastal waters of Sampang.
According to local fisherman Faisol Rahman, the vessel had been conducting survey activities in Ketapang waters for three days before the confrontation occurred.
“The ship was seen releasing cable coils to the seabed. On the fourth day, we decided to block and drive it away,” Faisol said, as quoted by Kompas.com. He added that the fishermen also asked PETRONAS to retrieve the cables that had been deployed underwater.
“After they finished winding up the cables, we asked them to stop operating and leave the area,” he said.
Compensation dispute
The fishermen’s action was also triggered by an unresolved compensation claim related to the destruction of fish aggregating devices (rumpon) during PETRONAS’ previous seismic survey in August 2024.
“Hundreds of rumpon were damaged and lost when the seismic vessel passed through. PETRONAS promised to pay compensation, but until now nothing has been paid,” Faisol said.
Read also: PETRONAS secures FID approval for Hidayah field development
He added that there were rumors the compensation funds had already been disbursed by PETRONAS, but the fishermen had never received any payment.
“We have not received a single rupiah,” he said.
Another fisherman, Winarno, confirmed that about 100 boats joined the protest to express their dissatisfaction. He said compensation claims from fishermen in three subdistricts in Sampang and two in neighboring Pamekasan remained unsettled.
“Until the compensation is paid, we will continue to block any vessel operating here,” Winarno said.
PETRONAS’ Senior Government & Stakeholder Relations Manager, Erik Yogapurana, could not be reached for comment. He told Kompas.com that an official statement regarding the compensation issue was still under review.
Meanwhile, SKK Migas spokesperson for the Java, Bali, and Nusa Tenggara (Jabanusa) region, Singgih Putra Perdana, was also unavailable for comment.
The Hidayah field is operated by PC North Madura II Ltd., a subsidiary of PETRONAS, which holds a 100 percent participating interest in the North Madura II Production Sharing Contract.
As previously reported by Petromindo.com on January 9, 2025, PETRONAS secured Final Investment Decision (FID) approval for the Hidayah field development. The project includes the drilling of production wells supported by an unmanned production platform, a central processing platform, and a Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) unit.
The Hidayah field is expected to produce up to 25,276 barrels of oil per day at peak output, with first oil targeted in the first quarter of 2027.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak