PT Lapindo Brantas

PT Lapindo Brantas is an Indonesian oil and gas exploration and production company focused on the Brantas Block in East Java. Its operating area covers approximately 3,042 square kilometres and includes onshore areas in Kediri, Nganjuk, Jombang, Sidoarjo, Pasuruan and Mojokerto, as well as offshore areas associated with Probolinggo and Situbondo. The company has historically operated through a joint-venture structure involving PT Energi Mega Persada Tbk, PT Medco Energi Tbk and Santos Australia. The reported ownership proportions were 50 percent for Energi Mega Persada, 32 percent for Medco Energi and 18 percent for Santos Australia. Through its investment in Energi Mega Persada, the Bakrie family held a controlling interest in the wider ownership structure. Lapindo Brantas's core business consists of hydrocarbon exploration, field development and production within its Indonesian working area. Its activities have included drilling and operating natural-gas wells, managing production assets and distributing gas to nearby users. In 2009, the company began supplying natural gas to households in East Java. The distribution initiative was reported as being designed to deliver approximately 8 million cubic feet per day to households in villages around Surabaya, linking the company's upstream operations with local energy consumption. The company became internationally known because of the Sidoarjo mud flow, also known as the Lusi mud volcano. The eruption began in May 2006 near Porong in Sidoarjo Regency, East Java, after a natural-gas well drilled by Lapindo Brantas experienced a blowout-related incident. The mud eruption inundated settlements and affected residents, infrastructure and economic activity across the surrounding area. Responsibility for the disaster has remained contested: many accounts have attributed the event to the well-drilling operation, while some scientists and company representatives have argued that a nearby earthquake was the primary cause. Indonesian judicial proceedings ultimately acquitted the company and related parties of responsibility in a 2009 Supreme Court ruling, according to the cited reference material. Despite the legal outcome, Lapindo Brantas accepted responsibility for emergency-response and resettlement costs associated with the disaster. The company was reported to have paid more than Rp5 trillion toward compensation, emergency measures and the relocation or resettlement of affected residents. The mud flow has remained the defining public issue associated with the company and has shaped its reputation far beyond its conventional exploration and production activities. The company has been reported to employ a relatively small direct workforce supplemented by personnel supplied through third-party contracts. The cited company description identifies 77 permanent and contract employees and a further 142 people working through third-party arrangements. Publicly available information in the supplied references provides limited detail about later production volumes, corporate leadership, financial performance and current ownership. Accordingly, this dossier treats Lapindo Brantas as an active Indonesian oil and gas operator while leaving unsupported corporate particulars unspecified.

Lapindo Brantas was established as an Indonesian oil and gas exploration company through a joint venture involving PT Energi Mega Persada Tbk, PT Medco Energi Tbk and Santos Australia. The reported interests were 50 percent, 32 percent and 18 percent respectively. Energi Mega Persada was associated with the Bakrie family through its investment structure, giving the family a controlling position in the wider corporate arrangement. The company operated in the Brantas Block in East Java, a large working area encompassing several onshore regencies and offshore areas near Probolinggo and Situbondo. Its principal activities have been exploration, drilling, hydrocarbon production and related field operations. The Brantas Block includes onshore areas around Kediri, Nganjuk, Jombang, Sidoarjo, Pasuruan and Mojokerto, together with offshore areas linked to Probolinggo and Situbondo. The company later extended its role into downstream delivery by beginning a natural-gas supply project for households in East Java in 2009. The project was described as targeting villages around Surabaya and providing approximately 8 million cubic feet per day. Lapindo Brantas's history is dominated by the Sidoarjo mud flow, which began in May 2006 near Porong. A mud volcano emerged after the drilling of a natural-gas well associated with the company. The event caused extensive disruption, including the inundation of communities and the displacement of residents. Responsibility has been disputed since the beginning. Critics and many public accounts connected the eruption to the drilling operation, while some scientific interpretations and company officials attributed it to a distant earthquake. The question became the subject of legal proceedings and prolonged public controversy. The Indonesian Supreme Court reportedly acquitted Lapindo Brantas of responsibility in 2009. The legal decision did not end the company's practical obligations. Lapindo Brantas was reported to have accepted responsibility for emergency measures and resettlement-related expenses and to have paid more than Rp5 trillion in connection with the response and support of affected residents. The disaster therefore became both a major environmental and humanitarian episode in Indonesia and the defining reputational issue for the company. Available reference material describes the company as continuing to operate with a relatively small direct workforce, supplemented by third-party personnel. It identifies 77 permanent and contract employees and 142 workers engaged through an external contracting arrangement. The supplied sources do not provide reliable current information on production levels, senior management, later ownership changes, financial performance or a current corporate website. Those fields remain unspecified rather than inferred.

• 2009

  East Java household gas distribution starts

  [1]Lapindo Brantasen.wikipedia.org

  Lapindo Brantas began supplying natural gas to households in East Java through a project reported to target villages around Surabaya.

• 2009

  Supreme Court acquittal reported

  [1]Lapindo Brantasen.wikipedia.org

  The Indonesian Supreme Court reportedly acquitted the company of responsibility for the Sidoarjo mud flow, while compensation and resettlement obligations continued.

• 2006

  Sidoarjo mud flow begins

  [1]Lapindo Brantasen.wikipedia.org

  A mud volcano began erupting near Porong in Sidoarjo Regency following the drilling of a natural-gas well associated with Lapindo Brantas.

An Indonesian upstream oil and gas operator with a regional natural-gas distribution role in East Java. Its public identity is also strongly shaped by the Sidoarjo mud-flow disaster and the associated response and resettlement obligations.

• Oil and gas exploration and production

  Brantas Block exploration and production

  The company's principal business is the exploration and production of hydrocarbons in the Brantas Block in East Java. The working area covers approximately 3,042 square kilometres and includes two broad onshore zones and three offshore areas. Activities include well drilling, field operations and the management of oil and natural-gas resources.

• Natural-gas distribution · 2009

  East Java natural-gas distribution

  Beginning in 2009, Lapindo Brantas supplied natural gas to households in East Java. The project was reported to involve delivery of approximately 8 million cubic feet per day to villages in the wider area around Surabaya, extending the company's role beyond upstream production.

• 2006

  Sidoarjo mud flow

  A mud volcano that began erupting near Porong, Sidoarjo, in May 2006 was widely linked to a Lapindo Brantas gas-well drilling operation. The eruption affected settlements and displaced residents. Alternative explanations, including the role of a distant earthquake, were advanced by some scientists and company officials. The issue led to extensive compensation, emergency-response and resettlement activity.

  Source

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• 2009

  Launch of household natural-gas distributionProduct launch

  Background

  The company sought to connect its East Java gas operations with local household energy demand.

  Action taken

  Lapindo Brantas began supplying natural gas to households in villages around Surabaya, with a reported target volume of approximately 8 million cubic feet per day.

  Aftermath

  The initiative gave the company a local gas-distribution role in addition to its upstream exploration and production activities.

  Source

• 2006

  Emergency response and resettlement commitmentOther

  Background

  The Sidoarjo mud flow caused severe disruption to residents and communities near the Porong drilling area.

  Action taken

  Lapindo Brantas undertook responsibility for emergency-response and victim-resettlement costs and was reported to have paid more than Rp5 trillion in connection with those obligations.

  Aftermath

  The company remained associated with the long-running environmental and humanitarian consequences of the mud flow, notwithstanding the reported 2009 Supreme Court acquittal.

  Reported emergency-response and resettlement expenditure. More than Rp5 trillion (From the 2006 mud-flow disaster onward)

  Source

1. 1Lapindo Brantasen.wikipedia.org