Pertamina, ConocoPhillips in unitization talks

State oil and gas company PT. Pertamina is in talks with US oil firm ConocoPhillips over the plan to unitize the Suban gas fields in South Sumatra in order to be able to jointly develop the fields.

Pertamina?s deputy upstream director Kun Kurnaely told reporters on Tuesday that Pertamina?s Suban Barat gas discovery would be unitized with ConocoPhillips? Suban gas field.

Kun said ConocoPhillips would likely be the operator of the field, but said the percentage of ownership on the unitized field was not yet determined.

Pertamina made oil and gas discovery at Suban Barat in April 2004 from Suban Barat-1 well which flowed 42MMCFD of gas and 346 BPD of condensate during drill stem test. Kun estimated recoverable reserves at Suban barat at around 1.6 TCF but said further appraisal drillings which will commence later this month would give more precise number.

Suban fields, which are located on the same structure with Suban Barat are located within ConocoPhillips? Corridor PSC block. ConocoPhillips (Grissik) Ltd is the operator of the Corridor Block PSC with a 54 percent interest. Other Corridor Block PSC contractors are Talisman (Corridor) Ltd, a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of Talisman Energy Inc, 36 percent, and Pertamina, 10 percent.

The size of gas reserves in ConocoPhillips? Suban field is not immediately known.

Kun said the partnership would look to sell their gas through pipeline to state gas distribution firm PGN which are currently looking for gas to be sold to Duri in Riau province and to North Sumatra using its Sumatra pipeline network. (godang)