TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Deputy in the fields of Energy and Mineral Resources Coordination at the Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for the Economy, Elen Setiadi, mentioned three potential oil and gas blocks that could increase the national oil production. These are the Abadi project, Tangguh UCC project, and the Indonesia Deepwater Development (IDD) project in the Geng North block.

He stated that all three oil and gas fields have the potential to increase oil production by up to 140,000 barrels per day (BOPD) and 4,256 MMSCFD of gas by 2030. He is optimistic that these three oil and gas projects will become the backbone of increasing national oil production in the coming years.

"If these projects go according to plan, the national production capacity could be significantly boosted. The Abadi Project alone has reserves of 15.24 trillion cubic feet (TCF) with an investment reaching US$20.9," said Elen at the Migas Forum Tempo, at the Raffles Hotel, South Jakarta, on Wednesday, August 20, 2025.

In addition to the Abadi oil and gas block, Elen mentioned that the Tangguh UCC project is projected to increase gas reserves by 3.0 TCF. The IDD and Geng North projects will require an investment of more than US$15 billion. "All three will become the backbone of Indonesia's future oil and gas investments," he said.

However, Elen emphasized that the success of increasing oil and gas production is not only determined by technical aspects, but also related to the investment climate. According to the Standard & Poor's report as of December 2024, Indonesia's attractiveness as an investment destination for oil and gas has improved due to the discovery of large reserves and fiscal reforms.

He mentioned several challenges in oil and gas investment today, including low competitiveness, complex regulations, slow bureaucracy, and weak legal certainty. He stated that the government has improved several regulations to address these challenges.

One of them is through the issuance of Government Regulation Number 28 of 2025 concerning Business Licensing Based on Risko. Elen claimed that this new regulation integrates the Online Single Submission (OSS) based licensing system with a positive list principle.

"If the complete license application is not processed within the specified time, then the license will be automatically valid. This provides certainty for investors, while also becoming the government's responsibility. This regulation will take effect from October 4, 2025," he said.

Elen revealed that the government also encourages the integration of energy transition into oil and gas development. For example, ExxonMobil's investment, which combines petrochemical development with the application of carbon capture and storage (CCS/CCUS) technology.

According to Elen, all of these efforts aim to achieve national energy self-sufficiency. "With better deregulation, a conducive investment climate, and synergy between the government, state-owned enterprises, and the private sector, we are optimistic that national oil and gas production can increase and support long-term energy resilience," he said.

Editor's Choice: Indonesia to Offer 60 Oil and Gas Blocks with Competitive Incentives

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News