Govt prepares new ruling to boost oil, gas production

The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry is preparing a new regulation in order to boost oil and gas production in the country, the ministry?s senior official has said.

Director General of Oil and Gas Evita H Legowo said in Jakarta last week that the new regulation would be issued in order to optimally develop gas and oil fields which are no longer operated by existing operators but still have the potentials for further production.

?One of the clauses in the regulation will require existing operators to make an inventory on oil or gas wells they no longer operate, but still have the potentials for further production,? she said.

According to Evita, if the operators are no longer interested in operating such oil and gas wells, they should allow other parties to take over these fields.

She said that the new regulation would also oblige operators to report their latest proven oil and gas reserves in their respective working areas to the ministry within 14 days after the date on the new reserves was made. ?They should also submit a proposal for the development of the new reserves within 90 days,? she added.

?The ministry will hold a meeting with operators on December 10 to discuss the new ruling,? she said. ?We hope the new ruling can be issued on December 21, so that it can be implemented next year, and in 2011, oil and gas production will increase,? she added.

With the new regulation, the ministry hopes crude oil production will be able to reach one million barrels per day.

Indonesia?s oil production totaled 970,971 barrels per day in November, while the average production reached 948,914 barrels per day in the January to November, this year. (*)