Pertamina Indonesia Advances Lumut Balai 3 Geothermal Project, Drilling Begins on Second Well

en.Wedoany.com Reported - PT Pertamina Geothermal Energy Tbk (PGE), a subsidiary of Indonesia's state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina, has commenced drilling of the second well, LMB-19.4, for the Lumut Balai Unit 3 geothermal power project. Located in the Muara Enim region of South Sumatra Province, the project has a planned installed capacity of 55 MW and targets commercial operation by 2030. With the start of the second well, the project continues to advance upstream geothermal resource verification and production well construction, providing a resource foundation for subsequent power plant engineering implementation.

Well LMB-19.4 will use the same GDAP#123 drilling rig as the first well, LMB-19.3, and is planned to complete drilling in approximately 40 days. The first well was spudded in Babatan Village in July of this year, with a target depth of 2,500 meters, and drilling has now been completed. PGE stated that the second well is a drilling milestone that continues to advance following the phased results achieved from the first well, and that downhole temperature, pressure, and productivity test data will subsequently be used to refine the geothermal reservoir evaluation.

Lumut Balai Unit 3 is part of PGE's ongoing expansion in the Lumut Balai—Margabayur geothermal working area. The project officially entered the execution phase in January of this year, with construction work covering drilling, wellsite infrastructure, geothermal fluid gathering systems, and subsequent power generation facilities. PGE has also initiated procurement for FEED document preparation services for the project, preparing for power plant engineering design and subsequent EPC implementation.

On the funding side, Lumut Balai Unit 3 has been included in Indonesia's 2026 Green Book of priority projects for foreign loans, with plans to receive USD 158.86 million in concessional loan support from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). PGE is also advancing another 55 MW project, Lumut Balai Unit 4, in the same area. The two phases together will add 110 MW of geothermal power generation capacity, with Unit 4 targeting commercial operation by 2032.

PGE has already completed the Unit 1 and Unit 2 geothermal units in the Lumut Balai area, with Unit 2 achieving commercial operation in 2025. Units 3 and 4 will continue to leverage the existing geothermal resource area and supporting infrastructure to expand power generation capacity, and power purchase agreements have already been secured.