Shell awaits govt's approval on Masela Block

Royal Dutch Shell CEO Peter Voser said on Monday he was still waiting on approval from the Indonesian government over an agreement that a 30 percent participating interest of Japan-based Inpex Corporation in the Masela Block, Maluku, be transferred to Royal Dutch Shell.

The agreement was made in July but it had yet to be approved by the Indonesian government, Voser said on the sidelines of the 2011 Singapore Energy Summit.

The project will work in the Abadi gas field and planned to utilize floating LNG plant.

"We have expertise and skill in floating LNG. We want to share our footprints in natural gas. But I think, to bring this project to life, we are looking forward to the Indonesian government's approval," Voser told dozens of international journalists including The Jakarta Post.

"This project can generate significant revenue for the Indonesian government and Indonesian people," he added.

If the government approves the plan, Inpex, currently operating the block with a 90-percent participating interest, will still hold 60 percent of stake.

State-owned oil and gas firm PT Pertamina previously announced its plan to acquire a 10 percent stake.

The Abadi gas field was discovered in 2000.

In 2010, the government approved the development of the Masela Block which measures 3,221 kilometer squares and is in a water depth ranging from 300 to 1,000 meters.

Shell has focused their Indonesian businesses in the downstream area and the Masela project would be its first upstream venture in the country.