Indonesia has proposed its national sovereign wealth fund, Danantara, as a potential buyer for liquefied natural gas from Inpex's Abadi LNG project if no serious commercial buyers are secured by the end of April. The gas would supply the fund's downstream investment program.

Project Significance and Marketing Status

The Abadi LNG project is a designated national strategic project, critical for Indonesia's energy supply and its goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2060. The project is planned for a capacity of 10.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG and will also supply 150 million cubic feet per day of pipeline gas domestically. Inpex is engaged in discussions with potential buyers, noting that Asia Pacific LNG is "very precious" due to shorter shipping distances and regional supply constraints. A shortlist of five international buyers has been identified: Osaka Gas, Kyushu Electric Power, Shell Trading, BP Trading, and Chevron Trading. Osaka Gas confirmed the project is under consideration, while Shell declined to comment.

Development Timeline and Partnerships

Indonesia's Energy Minister aims for the project's front-end engineering and design phase to be completed by Q2 or Q3 of 2026 to enable engineering, procurement, and construction tenders. While SKK Migas hopes for project sanction in December 2024, Inpex is targeting a final investment decision in 2027. The FEED work is divided among several contractors: Worley is leading for SURF, pipeline, and carbon capture components; Saipem/Tripatra/McDermott and Technip Energies/JGC are competing for the FPSO; and JGC/Technip Energies and KBR/Samsung E&A/Adhi Karya are competing for the onshore LNG plant. Inpex recently received government approval for the project's environmental and social impact assessment.

Financial and Ownership Details

Danantara has earmarked $20 billion for the first phase of its investments, which includes energy security. The Masela production sharing contract is operated by Inpex with a 65% interest, alongside partners Pertamina (20%) and Petronas (15%).