Jakarta Globe, Rizqon Bilhuda | August 15, 2010
Indonesia. Kodeco Energy’s platform off the coast of East Java, about 80 kilometers north of Gresik, has been hit by an unidentified cargo vessel, causing a delay in oil production at the site.
Kodeco, which is involved in oil and natural gas exploration and exploitation in the country, operates under the West Madura production sharing contract.
“At this point, it is understood that Kodesco’s KE 40 [platform] is relatively safe. There has been no loss of life, no oil spill and no fire,” Budi Indianto, the deputy of operations for Indonesia’s upstream oil and gas regulatory body, BPMigas, said on Saturday.
Budi said the regulator had conducted a preliminary inquiry into the incident, which took place on Wednesday, but that more investigation was needed.
Also involved in the investigation are the Directorate General for Oil and Gas at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Kodeco Energy and the Coast Guard and Navy, which are searching for the cargo vessel.
“Our investigation of Wednesday’s accident is still continuing,” he said.
Budi said there had been no signs yet of an oil spill but that BPMigas and Kodesco would continue to monitor the site and make the necessary preparations in case a leak was detected later.
He said Kodeco had prepared oil booms to safeguard the location, supported by equipment provided by HESS, Santos, JOB Pertamina-Petrochina East Java and Kangean Energy.
“All the basic equipment was moved to the site just three hours after the incident,” Budi said.
According to the Web site of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the crash caused the platform to tilt by 40 degrees and caused some other damage, forcing the company to stop operations immediately.
The head of public and institutional relations for BPMigas, Elan Biantoro, said it was estimated that the incident might cause a production loss of 1,600 barrels of oil a day, or 15 million standard cubic feet per day.
Elan said that officials were assessing the stability and safety of the damaged platform, to determine where operations would be able to continue.
He predicted that if cleared, it would take two to three weeks before work at the platform could get back to full-scale production.
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