Total to drill four wells at Handil field

Total E&P Indonesie said it is planning to drill four oil wells this year at Handil field located in Mahakam Delta, East Kalimantan, as a move to compensate for the production natural declining of the oil field, a company official said.

The oil wells are expected to produce 2,500-4,000 barrels of oil per day, beginning 2013.

Aussie Gautama, Vice President Geoscience and Reservoir at Total E&P Indonesie, said the company is requesting the government to provide incentives for the development of the four wells.

?The PoD (Plan of Development) of the wells has been approved. However, considering the riskier nature of the field, we are requesting (the government) to provide incentives,? said Aussie.

The Handil field, discovered in 1974, is a mature oilfield. Total E&P, the operator of the field, has applied enhanced oil recovery (EOR) of lean gas injection beginning in November 1995 in five reservoirs in order to recover the tertiary oil and slow down natural declining rate of the field?s oil production. The Handil field production continued to decline from 200,000 BOPD in the late seventies to 12,500 BOPD in 2003.

Editing by Roffie Kurniawan