Hadi (left) and Mahfoedz: A lot of opportunities for Qatar to partner with Indonesia.

By Peter Alagos
Business Reporter

Indonesia is open to oil and gas explorations through potential partnerships with energy companies in Qatar, ambassador Deddy Saiful Hadi has said.
At the end of 2014, Indonesia’s proven oil reserves stood at 3.7bn barrels, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy. This figure reflects a stark contrast to Indonesia’s 5.9bn barrels of proven reserves in 1991.
To tap Indonesia’s energy reserves, Hadi said companies like Qatar Petroleum or RasGas could explore and develop potential oil fields under a production contract sharing scheme.
“There is a lot of opportunities for Qatar to partner with Indonesia, particularly oil and gas explorations and the possible production contract sharing with companies like Qatar Petroleum and RasGas,” Hadi told Gulf Times.
The ambassador’s proposal was an integral part of PT Medco Power Generation Indonesia president director Lukman Mahfoedz’s discussion during yesterday’s “CEO Plenary Session” at the 9th International Petroleum Technology Conference (IPTC) here.
According to Mahfoedz, while Indonesia has limited oil reserves, the country has around 103tn cubic feet (tcf) of gas and 574 tcf unconventionals.
“However, the remaining reserves are located in hard-to-reach areas in Indonesia’s eastern side and needs significant investments and technology to recover them,” Mahfoedz said during the session entitled “Technology and Partnerships for a Sustainable Future.”
Another area for partnership, according to Mahfoedz, is geothermal energy. He said Indonesia provides 40% of the world’s geothermal supply.
Hadi said the $1bn Joint Investment Fund (JIF) signed during President Joko Widodo’s visit to Qatar last September will play a significant role in enhancing Indonesia’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports.
Citing figures from Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade, Hadi said the country imports $1.5bn worth of oil and gas from Qatar every year. Meanwhile, Mahfoedz said Indonesia’s daily oil imports reach around 800,000 barrels.
Mahfoedz also said the energy demand in Indonesia in the next four years will be 6.1mn bpd of fuel, including coal. “By 2019, Indonesia will be a net importer of energy, including coal,” he said, adding that by 2025, Indonesia’s cap on oil and gas will be around 2.5mn bpd.
He added that the JIF will help fast track the construction of mega infrastructure projects like the 35,000-MW power plant, which is expected to be completed in 2019.
Asked about the impact of the low oil prices, Mahfoedz said the downturn “is, to some degree, beneficial to Indonesia as an energy importer.”
Hadi added, “Since we are importing oil and gas for our energy consumption, the low oil prices have a direct benefit to importers such as Indonesia.”