Pertamina to go ahead with its Arun regasification project
Tuesday, January 10 2012 - 03:01 AM WIB
Pertamina?s spokesman Mochamad Harun said in Jakarta on Monday that as part of the preparation for the conversion of the LNG plant into the gas receiving and regasification terminal, Pertamina has signed initial agreements on gas supply with state electricity company PLN and fertilizer producer PT Pupuk Iskandar Muda.
In addition, Pertamina has also discussed the company?s environmental impact analysis (AMDAL) of the project with the local government, he said, adding that the response from the local government was quite positive for the conversion of the LNG plant into a gas receiving and regasification terminal.
He, however, said that Pertamina has not yet secured any contracts for the LNG supply. ?We have formally proposed to the Energy and Mineral Resources Minister and LNG Tangguh to get LNG supply allocation,? he added.
Currently, Pertamina holds a 55 percent stake in the Arun LNG plant; while US oil and gas company ExxonMobil and a consortium of Japanese buyers have 30 percent and 15 percent of stakes, respectively, according to The Jakarta Post?s report.
Gas in Aceh was discovered by Mobil Oil Indonesia (which is now ExxonMobil Indonesia) in 1971. After studies, the government and its partners then set up an LNG plant in Arun and began exporting LNG to Japan in 1978.
Arun, the oldest LNG plant in the country, saw its production peak in 1994 when the company exported 224 cargoes worth of gas, equal to 16.2 million tons. Starting 2014, the gas reserves became no longer economical for LNG production.
Editing by Roffie Kurniawan