The Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) has secured approval for its development of the Anambas block in Indonesia, where it aims to acquire more projects, officials said on Thursday.
KUFPEC will invest about $1.54 billion to develop the Anambas block to produce 55 million standard cubic feet a year with an estimated 185 billion cubic feet of total gas sales, upstream oil and gas regulator SKK Migas said.
The company aims to reach a final investment decision early next year with production expected to start in 2028, country manager Sara Al-Baker told reporters.
The company sees Indonesia as a strategic location for expansion, its chief executive, Eisa Al-Maraghi, said.
"We are working with other partners in Indonesia to reach a mutual agreement to look into more assets to be acquired," Al-Maraghi told a press conference, but declined to give details.
The Anambas development includes installation of subsea pipelines connecting the field to existing facilities in the West Natuna Transportation System, KUFPEC said.
It is expected to deliver gas to both domestic and regional markets when it begins production, the company added.
Anamabas will be KUFPEC’s second project in the gas-rich Natuna Sea. It has a 33% participating interest in Natuna Block A, which supplies gas to Singapore.
The company, which has stepped up activities in Indonesia in recent years, is part of two separate consortia that signed contracts last year to explore Indonesia’s Melati and Amanah blocks.
Elsewhere in the Natuna Sea, KUFPEC has completed its joint-study on Natuna D-Alpha block and is reviewing the result of the study, Al-Baker said.
Natuna D-Alpha has one of world’s biggest gas resources in the world, but has high carbon dioxide (CO2) content.
Once a member of OPEC, Indonesia is now a net importer of oil due to ageing wells and lack of investment, and President Prabowo Subianto is keen to reverse the trend and reduce reliance on imported energy.
(Reuters - Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)