Government allows BP to export part of output from Tangguh train 3
Wednesday, December 2 2015 - 02:46 AM WIB
Director General of Oil and Gas at the ministry Djoko Siswanto was quoted by Kontan as saying Wednesday that part of the output from train 3 allocated for the domestic market can be exported if the domestic market could not absorb the entire output allocation.
He added that the ministry, in the letter, also expressed its support for the development of the Tangguh train 3, and acknowledged that certainty of buyers is crucial for the project to proceed.
As has been reported by this portal on November 12, BP has sent a letter to the MEMR, asking for certainty regarding domestic demand for LNG from the train 3.
Djoko said that in the letter, BP is committed to provide any amount of LNG the domestic market wants from the Tangguh train 3 and will export the rest. The firm, however, demands the gas sales and purchasing contracts be signed as soon as possible -- by March 2016 at the latest.
Train 3 is designed with a capacity of 3.8 mtpa, which will bring the total capacity of Tangguh LNG plant to 11.4 mtpa.
In October of last year, BP Indonesia reported that Tangguh Contractor Parties signed a sales and purchase agreement with state-owned electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) (Persero) to supply up to 1.5 million tons of LNG a year for 19 years beginning in early 2015. In addition, BP has also secured commitment from a Japanese customer (Kansai Electric) of 1 mtpa from Train 3.
?To date, there is no additional (domestic) buyer,? Djoko said as quoted by Kontan.
The government had expected to state-controlled gas distribution firm PT PGN Tbk and oil and gas firm PT Pertamina to buy the output from Tangguh train 3. (*)