Oil and gas bill to drive in investment

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the oil and gas bill, when it is passed into law, would provide a legal certainty and attractive facilities to investment, and thus would attract more foreign investment into the country, Kompas daily reported Friday.

When the bill is passed into law, Purnomo said, the government would embark on a foreign road show to promote investment in Indonesia's oil and gas industry.

The government and the House of Representative are deliberating the oil and gas bill.

In the oil and gas bill, Purnomo said, all responsibilities of the investors are clearly stipulated, including income to the government, spending costs, period of contract, continuation of a contract, dispute settlement and environmental management.

The responsibilities of oil and gas contractors to protect the environment and empower local people are also stipulated in the bill.

Under the bill, all oil and gas contracts should go to the House of Representatives, and thus they would have stronger legal footing.

Purnomo explained that the bill would give no chance for any investors to resurface of the idea of applying the contract of work system in the country's oil and gas industry.

Instead, the bill insists on the use of production sharing contracts to maximize the government's income from the oil and gas industries. (*)