Indonesia Approved 18 Oil, Gas Project Plans During Jan-Apr

Indonesia's upstream oil and gas regulator, SKK Migas said it approved development plans for 18 oil and gas projects from January to April.

Total investment is estimated at $1.496 billion or around Rp19.5 trillion, SKK Migas’ head of public relation said Sunday.

The projects are expected to start between 2016 and 2020. A total of 16 fields are located in western region while the remaining two are in the east.

According to the regulator these 18 project are expected to produce 45 million barrels of oil and 271 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

Indonesia is witnessing continuous decline in oil and gas production due to slide in output from depleting fields. Earlier this year, Badak LNG, one of country’s biggest LNG plants, said output is expected to be 152 LNG cargoes this year, down from 182 cargoes last year.

Many government officials believe the nation may begin importing LNG as early as 2019 as domestic demand continues to expand.