Eni snaps up Indonesian block
Italy’s Eni has won rights to the West Ganal block off the coast of Indonesia, fortifying its position in the Kutei oil and gas basin.
Eni will operate a production-sharing contract (PSC) for the 1,130-km2 area off the shore of East Kalimantan with a 40% stake, the company said in an August 26 statement. Its partners are Indonesian state oil company Pertamina and private equity-backed Neptune Energy, each with 30% interests.
“This new project will allow a further increase in the availability and flexibility of gas supply both for the domestic market and for export, as well as strengthening Eni’s position in the LNG market in Asia-Pacific,” the company said.
West Ganel borders the Eni-operated Muara Bakau and East Sepinggan PSCs and contains the Maha gas discovery, estimated to hold more than 600bn ft3 in in-place resources. There is additional exploration potential beyond this find, according to Eni.
The block’s development will benefit from the close proximity of the Jangkrik gas field at Muara Bakau, which Eni brought into production in May 2017. Gas from Jangkrik is exported in the form of LNG from the onshore Bontang LNG complex. Eni also had its development plan for the Merakes gas discovery at East Sepinggan approved by authorities in April last year.
The Italian major has been working in Indonesia since 2001 and holds rights to 14 exploration and production permits. It was awarded West Ganal in Indonesia’s 2019 oil and gas bidding round.