JAKARTA. The Ambassador of Japan to Indonesia YasuakiTanazaki on Friday (23/9) visited the office of Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources. During the visit, Yasuaki discussed with the Care Taker of Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Luhut Binsar Panjaitan about the letter from Inpex Corporation on 26 August 2016 to Government of Indonesia.

On the letter, Inpex requested for moratorium of its contract on Masela (South Maluku) Bloc during 2006-2016 to Government of Indonesia. The moratorium will allow Inpex to extend its contract durationon Masela Bloc from 2028 to 2038.

According to Inpex, the request was driven by Indonesian government’s decision to shift from offshore scheme to onshore scheme. Inpex claimed that the scheme shift has affected time planning for Masela Bloc development.

In responding to the request, care taker of Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Luhut BinsarPanjaitan admitted that he already has routine conversations with Inpex regarding this matter. “We discussed about profit sharing and other technical matters”, Luhut said. Until now, Inpex has spent US$1.2 billion for investment in Masela Bloc.

Director General of Oil and Gas at Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources I Gusti Nyoman Wiratmaja admitted that the ministry is conducting intensive dialog with Inpex about the moratorium.  The ministry is reviewing the request to ensure that the moratorium will not violate existing regulations.

As an information, the project in gas-rich Masela Bloc will just start producing in 2014. In other words, without contract extension, Inpex will enjoy the benefits from Masela Bloc’s gas production in only four years.

(MUHAMMAD FARID/Translator)

Editor: Rizki Caturini