- VIVAnews/Anhar Rizki Affandi
VIVAnews – State oil and gas company, PT Pertamina expands its businesses to overseas market by introducing SEMAR (Smart Chemical Modifier for Enhance Oil Recovery) in World Petroleum Congress event in Doha, Qatar.
Pertamina claimed that the Indonesia's original product has been certified to increase oil production up to 200 percent. This technology is very appropriate to be applied in fields in South America, Africa, and Middle East with heavy oil characteristics.
“We offer this technology to countries with heavy oil distribution worldwide, such as North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Middle East, Asia and Australia,” said Vice President of Pertamina’s Corporate Communications, Mochamad Harun, on Tuesday, Dec 6.
Harun explained that SEMAR is a chemical technology specially designed to reduce oil viscosity in the reservoir. This technology can be applied in oil fields with heavy oil characteristics under 20 degree API (American Petroleum Institute) standard.
According to Harun, SEMAR has significant superiority compared to steam technology. During the testing, SEMAR is able to reduce oil viscosity from 253 cp (centi poice/consistency unit) to 2 cp with 60°C (celcius).
“When using hot steam, it would need a very high temperature around 300-350°C,” he said.
Harun described that SEMAR technology will not affect the reservoir and the production facilities like hot steam injection technology. Therefore, this technology is environmentally friendly.
SEMAR has been developed since 2004. Testing has been performed in Zamrud oil field in Sumatera on 2007-2008, as well as Arahan and Banjarsari fields in Java in 2009-2010.
Testing with injection-soak-production method has shown success of production increment of around 400 barrels per day in the previously not productive or below 10 barrel per day production.
Whereas, for continuous injection method in Arahan and Banjarsari fields during 2009-2010, it has succeeded to increase production up to 200 percent with additional oil produced reaching 35,260 barrels.
