EXXONMOBIL’S proposed development plan for the South China Sea Natuna D-Alpha gas field in the Indonesian sector has been thrown out.
Indonesia’s minister of petroleum, Yusgiantoro Purnomo, said the plan was rejected because the government considers ExxonMobil’s production-sharing contract for the concession to have expired in 2005.
The US super-major submitted its plan to Indonesia’s industry overseeing body, BPMigas, and the energy ministry’s director-general of oil&gas at the end of last year.
Natuna-D Alpha is believed to contain some 222trillion cu ft of gas, of which some 46TCF is thought to be recoverable.
Natuna is characterised by having a very high carbon-dioxide content.