The government awarded a contract extension on Monday for United States firm ConocoPhilips in the second largest gas-producing Corridor Block onshore South Sumatra. Last week, it also gave the green light for the US$20 billion Abadi LNG project at the Masela Block onshore South Maluku by approving Japan’s Inpex Corp's revised plan of development (PoD).

The Corridor Block is the last of the “big three”, the licenses of which were to expire, to be decided. The big difference was that the incumbent operators of the other two production sharing contracts (PSCs) – the offshore Mahakam (Total) and Rokan (Chevron) – both lost out to state-owned oil and gas giant Pertamina, according to global energy consultant Wood Mackenzie.

“This decision suggests a new pragmatism at play from the Indonesian government following recent national elections, acknowledging the importance of international oil company (IOC) experience,” Wood Mackenzie research director Andrew Harwood wrote in a statement.

“Combined with the recent approval of Inpex’s revised PoD for the Abadi LNG, it indicates that retaining IOC expertise and capital is once again on the government’s radar,” he added.

The decisions were made by the government a month after the Constitutional Court ruled in favor of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s reelection and against contender Prabowo Subianto’s charges of fraudulent elections.

Throughout Jokowi's and Prabowo’s campaign trail, the nationalist sentiment of protecting resources and workers from an influx of foreign influence dominated campaign promises. Incumbent Jokowi made international headlines by announcing energy and mining assets were to be taken over by state-owned enterprises from giant multinationals that have operated for decades in Indonesia, a move seen as an effort to gain votes.

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