Eni Announces New Giant Gas Discovery

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan April 20. Italian energy company Eni has announced a major gas discovery at the Geliga-1 exploration well in the Ganal block of the Kutei Basin, offshore Indonesia, Trend reports via the company.

The well, drilled in the Kutei Basin approximately 70 kilometres off the coast of East Kalimantan, has encountered preliminary in-place resources estimated at around 5 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas and 300 million barrels of condensate.

Geliga-1 was drilled to a total depth of about 5,100 metres in water depths of roughly 2,000 metres. The well encountered a substantial gas column in a Miocene-aged reservoir, which is described as having strong petrophysical characteristics. A Drill Stem Test (DST) is planned to evaluate reservoir productivity.

The discovery forms part of a broader exploration success story in the Kutei Basin. It follows the Geng North giant discovery in late 2023, located about 20 km to the south, and the Konta-1 discovery announced in December 2025. Together, these findings reinforce the basin's significant gas potential and the scalability of its resources.

Eni noted that Geliga-1 comes after recent final investment decisions (FIDs) for the Gendalo and Gandang gas project (South Hub), as well as the Geng North and Gehem fields (North Hub). The North Hub development includes a new floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit with a capacity of 1 billion cubic feet per day (bscfd) of gas and 90,000 barrels per day of condensate, alongside the existing Bontang LNG plant.

The company said ongoing studies are assessing accelerated development options, leveraging proximity to existing infrastructure to reduce time-to-market and optimize costs. The Geliga discovery lies near the undeveloped Gula gas field, which holds an estimated 2 Tcf of gas in place and 75 million barrels of condensate.

Preliminary assessments suggest that combined resources from Geliga and Gula could support production of up to 1 bscfd of gas and 80,000 barrels per day of condensate, potentially enabling the development of a third production hub in the basin. Studies are also underway to expand capacity at the Bontang LNG plant beyond current North Hub plans, extending its operational life.

Over the past six months, Eni has drilled four additional exploration wells in the basin, with further drilling planned in 2026 and 2027.

MENAFN20042026000187011040ID1111004196