Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – The Indonesian Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources is offering 12 oil and gas blocks or working areas in 2022 with a contract scheme flexibility to generate upstream oil and gas businesses in the country.

The number of the offer is less than that in 2021 when the government offered 14 conventional oil and gas blocks, Director General of Oil and Gas of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Tutuka Ariadji said at an online press conference here on Wednesday (Jan. 19).

Based on the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Regulation Number 12 of 2020 concerning Gross Split Production Sharing Contracts, the government provides flexibility in cooperation contracts in the auction of work areas in the forms of cost recovery or gross split.

Tutuka noted that in 2021, the government offered 14 conventional oil and gas blocks or 140 percent of the target of 10 blocks.

The conventional oil and gas blocks bidding were announced in two stages. The first was on June 17 for six work areas, and the second stage was on November 29 for eight areas.

The government continues to improve the terms and conditions of the cooperation contract to make the business more attractive.

In addition to the flexibility of the contract, the improvements include increasing the contractor split, from 80:20 for very low geological risks to 55:45 for very high category.

Meanwhile for natural gas, the split is set from 75:25 for the very low level to 50:50 for the very high level.

Reporting by Indonesia Window