Eric Watkins
OGJ Oil Diplomacy Editor
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 2 -- The board of CBM Asia Development Corp., building on development of their Indonesia coalbed methane interests, has appointed Scott H. Stevens as a director.
According to CBM Asia, Stevens, senior vice-president and director of Advanced Resources International Inc., is “one of the principal founders of Indonesia's rapidly emerging [CBM] industry.”
Since 1995 he has worked with numerous multinational oil and gas companies, as well as the government of Indonesia, to evaluate CBM resources and develop current regulations for CBM investment in that country.
CBM Asia said Stevens was the first “to recognize and rigorously quantify Indonesia's prospective 450 tcf of [CBM] resources, through extensive studies on behalf of PT Caltex Pacific International, the Asian Development Bank, and Indonesia's Department of Energy and Mineral Resources.”
Stevens’ appointment follows closely on the heels of CBM Asia Chief Executive Officer and Pres. Al Charuk being appointed to the board of South Sumatra Energy (SSE) Inc., a private firm jointly owned by Jakarta-based PT Ephindo (Ephindo) and Toronto-based McLaren Resources Inc.
In a 50-50 joint venture with Jakarta-based operator PT Medco Energi Internasional Tbk (Medco), SSE holds the first-ever CBM production-sharing contract to be awarded by the government of Indonesia, the 58,349-ha Sekayu block in the South Sumatra basin.
Charuk’s appointment followed an announcement by CBM Asia in early December that it closed its letter of intent with Batavia Energy Inc. to acquire, indirectly, 24% of SSE.
CBM Asia made an upfront cash payment of $730,000 and is required to fund $3,243,500 for exploration of the Sekayu block over the next 3 years to earn an estimated 12% working interest in the Sekayu PSC. A second cash payment of $350,000 is payable by Mar. 1, 2011.
In December, CBM Asia together with partners Medco and Ephindo announced results of Indonesia's first commercially drilled CBM test well (CBM-SE-02) in the Sekayu PSC.
The partners said Medco drilled CBM-SE-02 exploration core well “in September 2009 to a depth of 1,959 ft penetrating the upper Palembang B and C, and lower Pangadang A coal seams, within the Maura Enim Formation, recording a net coal thickness of approximately 90 ft.”
Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].
File photo from PDVSA..
