Inpex CEO meets Jokowi
Tuesday, June 14 2016 - 09:00 AM WIB
Visiting CEO of Japan?s Inpex Corp, Toshiaki Kitamura met President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on Tuesday at the State Palace in Jakarta discussing various aspects of the planned development of Masela block, in Maluku.
Inpex Corp Senior Manager for Communication and Relation, Usman Slamet told petromindo.com that the visit by Kitamura was to reconfirm various issues of the Masela block development including regulatory, fiscal and commercial terms, technical and non-technical risks. Inpex was also seeking for Jokowi?s support to allow the company, which operates the Masela block, accelerates the planned development of the block?s gas-rich Abadi field.
The visit was made after Jokowi in March decided for Inpex and its partner Royal Dutch Shell to build an onshore facility to process gas from the Abadi field. Inpex in its plan of development proposed the use of a floating LNG facility. Inpex reportedly plans to submit a new PoD based on an onshore facility scheme in June 2019.
Usman reiterated that Inpex is committed to continue the development of the Abadi field, but stressed that the project must be ?economically and technically rationale.?
Meanwhile, Inpex Vice President for Corporate Services Nico Muhyiddin said that to allow the company move toward developing the Masela project based on an onshore scheme, the company needs changes in the terms and conditions of the production sharing contract such as extension of the contract, tax holiday, higher production capacity, and costs to be covered under the cost-recovery mechanism.
Inpex holds a 65 percent stake in the Masela block, while Shell the remaining 35 percent.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak