Indonesia looks to replace BP Migas chairman

March 14, 2008
Indonesia, seeking to replace Kardaya Warnika as chairman of the country's upstream oil and gas regulator BP Migas, will present three potential candidates for parliament to consider next month.

Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent

LOS ANGELES, Mar. 14 -- Indonesia, seeking to replace Kardaya Warnika as chairman of the country's upstream oil and gas regulator BP Migas, will present three potential candidates for parliament to consider next month.

Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro, who Mar. 12 confirmed that Kardaya would be replaced before his tenure ended in 2010, identified the three candidates and said their names would be presented to parliament next week.

Purnomo said it was simply time to "refresh" the agency, declining to say if the replacement plan had come in response to complaints by lawmakers over Kardaya's performance in office.

Purnomo named the candidates as R. Priyono, currently director for upstream activities at the ministry; Evita H. Legowo, an assistant to the minister for human resources and technology; and Hadi Purnomo, director of a research and development center for oil and gas technology.

Reports said lawmakers have been demanding a replacement for Kardaya, saying his administration of BP Migas failed to increase the country's output of crude oil. The country's oil production has declined over the past 5 years, with production under 1 million b/d in 2007.

Kardaya, who has held his post since 2005, several times failed to appear before legislators, sending his deputy instead. Lawmaker Tjatur Sapto Edy said parliament is ready to test the candidates next month and hope to install the new chairman by the end of April.

Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].