Pertamina To Take Over Shell's Stake in Masela Gas Project

Pertamina, Indonesia's state energy company, is expected to take over Shell's 35% stake in the Masela gas project by the end of the month, energy minister Arifin Tasrif told parliament on Monday.

Government officials have repeatedly urged Shell to complete the share sale, with Indonesia eager to speed up development of the project in the country's east.

Arifin told members of the parliamentary committee overseeing the energy sector that Pertamina is leading a consortium to take over the stake without providing further details.

The project, led by Japan's INPEX, is expected to have a peak annual LNG production volume of 9.5 million tonnes. INPEX revised its Masela development plan this year to include carbon capture and storage.

PT Pertamina, formerly known as Perusahaan Pertambangan Minyak dan Gas Bumi Negara, is a Jakarta-based Indonesian state-owned oil and natural gas corporation. It was formed in August 1968 by the merger of Pertamin (founded in 1961) and Permina (founded in 1957). In 2020, the company ranked third in Indonesian crude oil production, trailing ExxonMobil's Mobil Cepu Ltd and Chevron Pacific Indonesia. Pertamina was ranked 122 on the Fortune Global 500 list of companies in 2013, with revenues of $70.9 billion; it was also the only Indonesian company to be included on the list. Pertamina is the largest company in Indonesia, according to the 2020 Fortune list.