It's Now or Never

The government must quickly decide on how the Masela Block over eastern Indonesia's Arafura sea is to be developed. It is not just to end a spat between Maritime Affairs Coordinating Minister Rizal Ramli and Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said but, more importantly, to get this vital project up and going and to allay the fears of potential investors on the uncertainty of doing business in Indonesia.

The pushing and pulling was brought into the open when Ramli declared that the block must be an onshore operation. He said a floating liquefied natural gas terminal, as approved by the upstream regulator SKK Migas was too expensive and would not benefit the local population. There were still the additional issues of security and the large-scale effectiveness of a floating rig.