Muba mulls cooperation with China?s Sinopec to reactivate old wells

The Musi Banyuasin regency administration in South Sumatra has planned to cooperate with China?s oil firm Sinopec to reactivate 300 old oil wells in the area, Neraca daily reported Monday.

The 300 wells were among the 500 old oil wells located in Musi Banyuasin. The regency administration would allow local private investors and cooperatives to operate the remaining 200 wells, regent Alex Noerdin was quoted as saying recently.

Alex said further his office had formed a new company, PT Kilang Muba, to run an oil refinery in the area, Alex said. The plant had capacity to distill 500 barrels per day (BPD) of oil, which would be increased to 3,000 BPD within three years, the official said.

Earlier reports said that the regency administration had carried out feasibility studies on old oil wells in the area in cooperation with the Bandung Institute of Technology.

Meanwhile, China?s Tianjin Group last year studied the possibilities of reactivating old oil wells in Musi Banyasin. (*)