Pertamina?s new leaders eye expansion

The new management of state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina vowed on Thursday to expand the company?s operations in foreign countries and maximize efforts to increase the value of its domestic assets.

Company new president Ariffi Nawawi said the new management would try to boost the company?s oil and gas output through exploration and production activities both in the country and overseas.

?We shall also strengthen our position in the country?s downstream sector. We shall ask the government to allow us to keep controlling all the downstream assets we are now operating,? Ariffi said following the ceremony to install the new management.

The ceremony was presided over by Roes Aryawijaya, a deputy at the Minister of State Enterprises.

Pertamina now operates nine oil refineries with the combined processing capacity of more than 1 million barrels per day. Some of the refineries, however, belong to the state. Last year, the World Bank asked the government to sell some of the refinery assets to investors to give them a better start to compete with Pertamina once the country?s downstream sector is liberalized. But, Pertamina?s then president Baihaki Hakim strongly rejected the idea, while Minister of State Enterprise Laksamana Sukardi, who is keen to privatize all state owned companies, is allegedly interested in the idea.

Separately, new upstream director Bambang Nugroho said his main programs are to ?maximize the value of Pertamina?s domestic assets, expand the company?s exploration and production activities outside the country and boost cooperation with third parties.

?We shall prioritize negotiations with ExxonMobil on the Cepu block as it (the Cepu block) will significantly boost our production,? Bambang said.

He said Pertamina still has a lot of oil and gas blocks in Sumatra and Jawa, which are believed to contain huge untapped hydrocarbon resources.

Pertamina was open for cooperation proposals from any parties to develop the blocks, Bambang said.

Meanwhile, Pertamina?s new financial director Alfred Raimone said Pertamina will need billions of dollars to finance its expansion programs over the next several years.

?We shall increase our exposure to financial market to raise the funds,? Alfred said. (Alex)