PTTEP to sell interest in South Mandar block

PTTEP Indonesia Company Ltd through its subsidiary PTTEP South Mandar Ltd plans to sell part of its interest in the South Mandar block in the Malacca Straits in a bid to raise cash to help finance costly drilling programs, Kontan reported on Friday.

PTTEP Indonesia is the operator of the South Mandar block with a 51 percent interest, while the remaining 49 percent is held by Total E&P Indonesie. ?The data room has been opened for a number of selected firms. Our hope is that the result can be obtained in the third quarter of 2014,? said Vice President of PTTEP Indonesia, Titi Thongjen to Kontan.

Titi said that drilling at deep water requires huge funds, estimated at US$100 million per well.

Zuldadi Rafdi, an official at the upstream oil and gas regulator SKK Migas said that PTTEP Indonesia initially offered the interest in South Mandar to partner Total E&P Indonesie, but the latter firm did not take the offer as it isn?t willing to become the operator.

According to him, based on the plan of development, PTTEP was supposed to have started drilling program in May of 2014, but due to lack of funds, the drilling program has been delayed for three months.

Aside from drilling program at the South Mandar block, PTTEP Indonesia also plans to drill two exploration wells at the Semai II block at the end of May, Kontan said. (*)