Medco to team up with Pertagas to market Block A gas
Thursday, May 16 2013 - 01:49 AM WIB
PT Medco E&P Indonesia (MEPI) plans to cooperate with PT Pertagas to sell part of the gas to be produced by the Block A PSC in East Aceh Regency, Aceh, to industrial consumers in Medan, North Sumatra.
The company wants to utilize the Arun-Belawan gas pipeline to be developed by Pertagas, a subsidiary of state-owned oil and gas firm PT Pertamina.
?We plan to market (part of the gas) to (industries) in Medan,? Director of Medco EP, Eka Satria Djalins told Petromindo.com on the sidelines of the IPA conference in Jakarta Wednesday.
Medco EP, a subsidiary of IDX-listed PT Medco Energi Internansional Tbk, is the operator of the Block A PSC, which it acquired in 2007, with a participating interest of 41.67 percent. Other partners are Premier Oil (41.67 percent) and Japex (16.66 percent).
The company announced recently it has made a gas discovery in the Matang-1 exploration well within the Block A PSC.
?After successfully drilling the Matang-1 well, (we) will develop the block further to determine the amount of reserves. The drilling result will be used as the basis for the marketing of the gas,? Eka said.
He said that gas demand from industries in Medan is quite huge.
Pertagas President Director Gunung Sardjono confirmed that his company through subsidiary PT Pertagas Niaga plans to purchase the uncommitted gas portion from Block A.
He said that Medco and Pertagas are currently in the process of completing an MoU for the gas purchase.
He added that the Arun-Belawan gas pipeline will have the capacity to transport 200 mmscfd of gas, which would be partly allocated to state electricity firm PLN, and the remainder for industries in Medan and Aceh.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak