Oil exploration and exploitation activities carried out by PT Petroenergy Utama Wiriagar (PUW) in the Bintuni Basin Working Area, Weriagar District, Bintuni Bay Regency, West Papua, face major challenges. To date, the daily production volume generated is deemed insufficient to cover the company's operational costs.
Based on the latest operational data, the Joint Operation (KSO) partner of PT Pertamina EP Papua Field is only able to produce crude oil of around 20 to 30 barrels per day (BOPD). This figure is far below the project's economic threshold, which should ideally be in the range of 200 to 300 BOPD for operational activities to run normally.
PT PUW Field Manager, Robinson Nederupun, admitted that from a business calculation perspective, the current condition puts the company in a losing position. Nevertheless, PT PUW remains committed to staying in Weriagar while waiting for strategic direction from central management regarding plans for new well development in the future.
Since securing a 20-year KSO contract in 2015 with a working area of 5,148 square kilometers, PT PUW's operations have often experienced ups and downs. In 2018, field activities came to a complete halt due to blockades by residents, before finally agreeing to resume operations in July 2019 after mediation involving the Bintuni Bay Regency Government, SKK Migas, security forces, and local community leaders.
Efforts to boost production were actually made in 2023 through the drilling of the new WPL-3 well. However, the well had to be closed again because the spudding results showed 100 percent water content. Currently, the company only relies on production from old wells (W-3, W-4, and W-5), the output of which is then sent to the Kasim Marine Terminal (KMT) in Sorong for processing at the Pertamina RU VII Kasim refinery.
