Indonesia plans to award oil exploration rights at the end of this month for up to nine blocks and would open new areas for tender in August. “We are currently still evaluating the bidders. There are several oil companies that are already operating in Indonesia, such as BP, Unocal and Total, involved in the bidding,” Director-General of Oil and Gas Rachmat Sudibyo told reporters.” We plan to announce the winner by the end of this month and we will open new areas for tender.” Indonesia in February opened the tender for the nine oil and gas blocks, including six areas in the Makassar Strait, where California-based Unocal Corp recently found a large oil reserve. “There are about two areas in Makassar Strait that seem to be less attractive for the oil firms. For those areas, the government will consider oil incentives,” Sudibyo said without elaborating. He said about 14 new areas, including two in the sea off East Kalimantan and six in the Arafuru Sea off southeast Indonesia, would be tendered in August. “We will open the new tender after we award the areas that were already tendered in February,” Sudibyo said.
