Pertamina not to participate in exploration blocks bidding

State oil and gas company Pertamina said it would not participate in new exploration acreages bid, which is scheduled to be open December this year.

?Thus far, Pertamina has no plan to participate in the bidding. We are concentrating more on exploring our existing work areas,? said upstream director Bambang Nugroho on Friday.

Government is offering 10 exploration acreages with deadline documents delivery June 30, 2004. Announcement is expected sometime in august 2004.

Pertamina had earlier asked for special privilege to acquire Palmerah block in South Sumatra and a number of other blocks, but the government turned the request down and asked the company to concentrate to explore its existing working areas, which reached 150 blocks across Indonesia.

Meanwhile, a government source said that US oil giant ExxonMobil Corp. may be interested to acquire at least one of the three offshore East Java blocks offered in the tender.

?ExxonMobil has asked for detailed information about those blocks,? said the source.

ExxonMobil has already has two working areas in East Java; Madura BD Block and Cepu Block, which has recoverable oil reserves in excess of 250 million barrels. (godang)