Australian, US Firms Bid for Indonesian Oil, Gas Blocks

Australian, US firms bid for Indonesian oil, gas blocks

JAKARTA, July 28 (Xinhua) — Australia’s Santos and US companies ConocoPhillips and Anadarko Petroleum Company are among 20 companies that have submitted bids for 11 oil and gas blocks currently on offer, an official has said.

“We will evaluate (the bids) and announce the winners early next month,” Novian Thaib, director of Exploration and Production of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, was quoted Thursday by The Jakarta Post as saying.

He added Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Pcl, the country’s second-largest gas producer, and Indonesia’s second biggest publicly listed oil and gas company PT Energi Mega Persada, are also bidding for the blocks.

To attract more investors, the government has scrapped value- added tax and import duty on all capital goods to be used during exploration and exploitation periods.

Indonesia is in dire need of new oil findings amid steadily declining output due to aging fields. The country’s crude oil and condensate production currently stands at about 1.056 million barrels per day (bpd), lower than the target of 1.125 million bpd assumed by the government.