East Natuna gas field

The East Natuna gas field (former name: Natuna D-Alpha block) is a large natural gas field located in the South China Sea off northern Natuna Island, Indonesia. It is within the disagreed area claimed by China.[1]

East Natuna
CountryIndonesia
RegionSouth China Sea
LocationGreater Sarawak Basin (East Natuna Basin)
Offshore/onshoreoffshore
OperatorPertamina
PartnersPertamina
ExxonMobil
Total S.A.
PTT Exploration and Production
Field history
Discovery1973
Production
Estimated gas in place222,000×10^9 cu ft (6,300×10^9 m3)
Recoverable gas46,000×10^9 cu ft (1,300×10^9 m3)
Producing formationsTerumbu Formation (Middle to Late Miocene)

History

The field was discovered in 1973 by Agip.[2][3] In 1980, the Indonesian state-owned oil company Pertamina and Exxon formed a joint venture to develop Natuna D-Alpha. However, due to the high CO2 content the partnership was not able to start production.[4] In 1995, the Indonesian government signed a contract with Exxon but in 2007, the contract was terminated.[4][5] In 2008, the block was awarded to Pertamina.[2]

The new agreement was signed between Pertamina and ExxonMobil in 2010. Correspondingly, the field was renamed East Natuna to be geographically more precise.[6] In 2011, the principal of agreement was signed between Pertamina, ExxonMobil, Total S.A. and Petronas.[7][8] In 2012, Petronas was replaced by PTT Exploration and Production.[7][9] As of 2016, negotiations about the new principal of agreement have not finalized and consequently, a production sharing contract is not signed.[10]

Reserves and development

The East Natuna gas field is located in the Greater Sarawak Basin (East Natuna Basin) about 1,100 kilometres (680 mi) north of Jakarta and 225 kilometres (140 mi) northeast of the Natuna Islands covering approximately 310 square kilometres (120 sq mi). The reservoir is at a water depth of 145 metres (476 ft) within the Miocene Terumbu Formation with a crest at 2,658 metres (8,720 ft) subsea. A maximum column height is 1,638 metres (5,374 ft). The thickness of the formation varies between 300 and 1,525 metres (984 and 5,003 ft).[2][3] The estimated resource in place of the East Natuna field is around 222 trillion cubic feet (6.3 trillion cubic metres), of which total proven reserves of natural gas are 46 trillion cubic feet (1.3 trillion cubic metres), and production is forecast to be around 1.98 billion cubic feet per day (56 million cubic metres per day).[9] The CO2 content of the resource is about 71%.[3]

The development of East Natuna is expected to cost US$20–40 billion. To save costs, the joint development of East Natuna, Tuna block (Premier Oil 65%, Mitsui Oil Exploration 35%), and South Natuna Sea Block B (ConocoPhillips 40%, Inpex 35%, Chevron Corporation 25%) has been proposed. Production is expected to be viable only if the oil price exceeds $100 per barrel. The production is expected to start not before 2030.[10]

References
  1. "Jakarta's China Challenge". The Wall Street Journal. 2015-11-17. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  2. CO2CRC Technologies Pty Ltd (2010). "6.2 Natuna discovery". Assessment of the capture and storage potential of CO2 co-produced with natural gas in South-East Asia. APEC. pp. 46–52. Retrieved 2016-04-25.
  3. Dunn, P. A.; Kozar, M. G. (1996). "Application of Geoscience Technology in a Geologic Study of the Natuna Gas Field, Natuna Sea, Offshore Indonesia". 25th Annual Convention Proceedings. Indonesian Petroleum Association. 1: 117–130. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  4. "Natuna Gas Field, Indonesia". Offshore Technology. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  5. Hiscock, Geoff (2012). Earth Wars: The Battle for Global Resources. John Wiley & Sons. p. 28. ISBN 9781118152881.
  6. Febrianto, Vicki (2010-12-06). "The winner for Natuna D-Alpha is.... Exxonmobil". Antara. Retrieved 2016-04-25.
  7. Azmar, Ahmal S. (2013-08-13). "Govt to award PSC to East Natuna contractors". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  8. Cahyafitri, Raras (2015-11-27). "East Natuna development faces possible negotiation delay". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  9. "PTTEP to replace Petronas in Indonesia East Natuna Project". 2b1stconsulting. 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  10. Cahyafitri, Raras (2016-01-07). "Joint operation of Natuna block proposed". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 2016-01-24.

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