Indonesia to Transform Aging Oil Wells into Tourist Attractions

Arnold Sirait
24 Februari 2016, 08:06
Blok Cepu
Katadata

KATADATA - The prevalence of illegal mining near aging ??oil and gas wells has the government concerned. To reduce these illegal activities, the government plans to transform aging wells into tourist attractions. To that end, the government will revise the Regulation of Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (EMR) 1/2008 on Guidelines for Exploitation of Aging Wells.

Director General of Oil and Gas IGN Wiratmaja Puja said that the government would review the role of village cooperatives (KUD) in managing abandoned aging wells, which has unfortunately led to a rise in illegal mining near aging wells. (Read: Government To Form National Committee on Oil and Gas Accidents)

These illegal mining activities pose a danger to local residents as poor safety and security have resulted in frequent accidents. So one idea that the government is looking at is to turn aging wells into tourist attractions, which is also expected to improve the welfare of local communities.

In Wonocolo village, Bojonegoro, East Java, for example, "We are working with local governments to transform aging wells into tourist attractions to offer people involved in illegal drilling alternative livelihoods in tourism," he told to reporters, at the Directorate General of Oil and Gas building, Jakarta, Monday (2/22). (Read: Government Can Reap IDR148 Trillion from 18 Oil and Gas Field Development)

Oil extraction activities can continue even after a site has been turned into a tourist attraction. The government plans to assign a subsidiary of Pertamina, Pertamina EP, to manage the wells to ensure work safety and security. Wiratmaja realises that the production from these wells will be negligible, which is why he will ask oil and gas contractors not to use sophisticated technologies to keep costs down.

Several aging wells have the potential to produce oil. Data from the EMR Ministry reveal that most of these aging wells are managed by Pertamina EP. There are 13,824 aging wells across Indonesia, of which the government manages only around 1,000. The remaining 12,824 wells have not been managed well. (Read: Government Promises Cheap Oil Prices for Refinery in Well Mouth)

South Sumatra has the most aging wells (3,623), followed by North Sumatra at 2,392, Central Sumatra, including Palembang, Riau and Jambi at 1,633, East Kalimantan at 3,143, and Central Java, Madura, and East Java at 2,496 wells. In addition, there are 229 aging wells in Maluku, 208 in Papua, and 100 in South Kalimantan. 

Reporter: Anggita Rezki Amelia
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