ExxonMobil Controls Natuna Until June
Friday, 12 January, 2007 | 15:14 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The government decided to give a time limit until June of this year to ExxonMobil for settling its liabilities with a third party at the D-Alpha Natuna Bloc. The settlement of the liabilities was set as of December 2006. The status of the Natuna Bloc will be erstablished after the liabilities of ExxonMobil is completed.

Director of Management of Upstream Business at the Department of Energy and Mineral Resources Priyono said that the government wants all processes legally done. “The Minister has asked that all legal and liability aspects are checked first. Then decision can be made,” he said yesterday (01/11).

The negotiation between the government and ExxonMobil, said Priyono, was concerned with the completion of all liabilities of the contractor. “It was not a (contract) renewal,” he said. The reason was that the government and Upstream Oil and Gas Executing Body (BP Migas) stated that the validation time of the contract was due. For the time being, the termination of the Natuna contract is still in process.

“The Energy Minister has administratively held a similar opinion with a proposal to terminate ExxonMobil’s contract from BP Migas,” said Priyono. The government is waiting to see if there are still ExxonMobil's liabilities to a third party, regional government and consultant so that there will not be any claim.

The government offered three options as regards the status of D-Alpha Natuna Bloc should the ExxonMobil contract be terminated. First, Natuna will be set as an open region so that Pertamina will have special rights to manage Natuna as Governmental Regulation Number 35/2004 stipulated. Second, to place the bloc into tender, it means that Pertamina will lose its special rights and must compete with another contractor. Third, a direct offer will be set up.

Director General of Oil and Gas Luluk Sumiarso said that the three options were vaild if the government terminated the contract with ExxonMobil. “The Energy Minister has agreed with the suggestion of BP Migas to terminate ExxonMobil's contract,” he said.

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