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Banyu Urip output halved amid upgrade
ExxonMobil Indonesia has had to temporarily shut down an oil well at the Banyu Urip field pending the completion of upgrade work, putting oil production at 40,000 barrels a day, half of its full capacity, for the next two weeks
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xxonMobil Indonesia has had to temporarily shut down an oil well at the Banyu Urip field pending the completion of upgrade work, putting oil production at 40,000 barrels a day, half of its full capacity, for the next two weeks.
The company is upgrading the existing facilities so they can connect to the newly commissioned Central Processing Facility.
ExxonMobil Indonesia's public and government affairs vice president, Erwin Maryoto, said the temporary shutdown would allow the safe startup of the new processing facility.
'As part of the inaugural operation of the Central Processing Facility, oil currently being produced from Well Pad B must be temporarily shut off in order to be rerouted and processed through the Central Processing Facility,' Erwin said.
'This work, beginning on Nov. 26, will take about two weeks to complete.'
Upon completion of the start-up process, Banyu Urip is expected to ramp up its production to more than 130,000 barrels per day, which will likely be reached by mid-December.
Completion of the start-up process will also mark the conclusion of Banyu Urip's development, which has been delayed for years for reasons including changes in the details of the development, policy difficulties with the local administration and a prolonged land-procurement process as well as a recent incident involving its workers.
Upstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Special Task Force (SKKMigas) spokesperson Elan Biantoro, meanwhile, said the authority expected that Banyu Urip would reach its peak production of 165,000 barrels per day by January at the latest.
'The commissioning will likely run for one month before it gradually increases production. We are expecting the field to be at peak level in early January,' Elan said.
Banyu Urip is expected to be the backbone of national oil production. It has been running from its temporary facilities since late 2008. Although its peak production is estimated at 165,000 barrels per day, the government is seeking to use the temporary facilities to boost output to a peak of 205,000 barrels per day.
It was expected to reach 205,000 barrels per day sometime this year. However, the target will likely be missed as the start-up process has also been delayed.
Earlier, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry's upstream director at the oil and gas directorate general, Djoko Siswanto, said that authorities and contractors were discussing a mechanism to extend the utilization of the temporary facilities to support production at Banyu Urip so it could reach 205,000 barrels per day by next year.
A contract for the usage of the temporary facilities will be due at the end of this year.
State-owned oil and gas company Pertamina, through its subsidiary Pertamina EP Cepu, holds a 45 percent interest in the Cepu block while ExxonMobil Indonesia's subsidiary ExxonMobil Cepu Limited owns another 45 percent stake. The remaining 10 percent stake is held by the Cepu Block Cooperation Body, which consists of locally owned companies run by the administrations of Blora regency, Bojonegoro regency, East Java and Central Java.
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