Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry will auction eight new oil and gas blocks next week as part of efforts to boost upstream exploration and offset declining output from existing fields.
“God willing, next week we will still auction eight more blocks,” Oil and Gas Director General Laode Sulaeman said late Friday at a media briefing in Jakarta.
The third-round auction of eight blocks is part of a broader offering of 75 oil and gas blocks prepared by the ministry to attract investment and strengthen future energy supply.
In 2025, Indonesia has already announced two rounds of oil and gas tenders. The first round, launched on June 20, offered three working areas, while the second round, announced on Oct. 14, put nine blocks up for auction.
“I just reported to the minister, and he said, go ahead with the auction. These 75 blocks are our backbone, our savings account for when production from existing fields starts to decline,” Laode said.
He said the eight blocks in the upcoming auction are located mainly in central and eastern Indonesia, including at least one block in Southeast Sulawesi.
Regarding potential bidders, Laode noted that companies participating in joint studies typically dominate the auctions.
“Generally, those that have conducted joint studies are the ones that bid and eventually win, because they already have sufficient data,” he said.
Previously, Nanang Abdul Manaf, head of the task force for accelerating oil and gas production and lifting, said the ministry has prepared 75 oil and gas blocks spread across Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Papua, and offshore areas.
All of the blocks are ready to be developed through either direct assignment or regular auction mechanisms, he added.
The government hopes the expanded auction program will help reverse Indonesia’s long-term production decline and support national energy security through increased exploration activity.
