Pertamina, Inpex want to be seller of Masela Block gas

By Godang Sitompul

State-owned oil and gas firm PT Pertamina and Japan?s energy giant Inpex Corporation are hoping to be appointed by upstream authority SKK Migas, as the seller of the government?s portion of output from the gas-rich Masela Block in the Arafura Sea.

?Inpex has indeed requested to be named as the seller of gas (from the Masela Block). So has Pertamina. SKK Migas will later appoint which company to become the seller,? Head of Natural Gas Commercialization Division at SKK Migas, Popi Ahmad Nafis told Petromindo.com.

Popi hopes that the seller could be named before 2014.

Inpex and its partners have embarked on a massive development of the Masela gas block, which is estimated to have gas reserves of more than 6 trillion cubic feet.

Inpex, which controls 60 percent interest in the block as the operator, is also building a floating LNG facility to process gas from the block, which is located in the deep sea area in Maluku.

The Masela block is expected to produce 2.5 million tons of gas and 8,400 barrels of condensate per year, starting 2018 or 2019.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak