Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production is suspending investment in Indonesia after the Asian nation’s government filed a $2 billion lawsuit against it for alleged damage from an oil spill eight years ago.
The civil lawsuit, filed in Jakarta, claims the firm had not shown good faith in resolving issues round the Montara oil spill that took place off Australia in 2009.
Indonesia claims the oil spill affected coastal regions as well as marine ecosystems.
“Due to the current lawsuit, PTTEP has decided to suspend its investment decision in potential projects until further conclusion of the lawsuit,” a PTTEP statement said.
Meanwhile the firm is planning to build a second LNG terminal for imports.
The move would bring the country’s total import capacity to 19 million tonnes per year, a company executive said.
The second terminal will have a capacity of 7.5 million tonnes per year, Wuttikorn Sitthit, PTT executive vice president of natural gas supply and trading, said at an industry event.