Dow Jones, Today Online 14 Feb 08;
An Indonesian agency has discovered potentially massive hydrocarbon reserves off the western coast of Aceh.
The State Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) said the forearc basin near the Simeulue Island could hold between 107.5 billion and 320.79 billion barrels of hydrocarbon reserves.
Saudi Arabia, which has the world's largest hydrocarbon reserves, has proven reserves of 264.21 billion barrels.
Officials at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources declined to comment on BPPT's finding. If the reserves are confirmed by further tests, it could enable Indonesia to revert to being a net oil exporter.
It is the only South-east Asian member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries currently producing slightly above 900,000 barrels of oil a day, but rising domestic consumption of petroleum products has made Indonesia a net oil importer in recent years.
Indonesia's last major oil discovery in the past 30 years was the 450-million-barrel Cepu oil field by Exxon Mobil.
The agency discovered the forearc basin when it conducted a geological and geophysical research after the giant killer tsunami wave on Dec 26, 2004, which destroyed beaches around the Indian Ocean. The study was conducted with Germany's Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources.
