Eni and PETRONAS have officially established Searah, a new 50/50 independent joint venture (JV) combining selected upstream assets in Indonesia and Malaysia, following the completion of all regulatory approvals and closing conditions.

The JV brings together 19 producing and development assets, including 14 in Indonesia and five in Malaysia, with an initial production base exceeding 300,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d). Searah aims to increase sustainable production to more than 500,000 boe/d within the next three years.

To support its growth strategy, Searah has secured a $6 billion revolving credit facility and plans to invest more than $20 billion over the next five years. The investments are expected to advance the development of over 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) of discovered resources while unlocking additional exploration potential.

The launch follows Eni’s recent final investment decisions (FIDs) for the Gendalo and Gandang fields in the South Hub, as well as the Geng North and Gehem fields in the North Hub. Together, these projects contain nearly 10 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas initially in place and around 550 million barrels (mmbbl) of associated condensate. Production is expected to commence in 2028 and reach a plateau of 2 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d) of gas and 90,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) of condensate by 2029.

The JV also comes after Eni’s Geliga-1 gas discovery in the Ganal Block, offshore Indonesia, which is estimated to hold around 5 Tcf of gas and 300 mmbbl of condensate in place.

Searah will operate through an independent management structure, integrating personnel and expertise from both companies. Eni and PETRONAS said the partnership is expected to create operational synergies, particularly in logistics and technology, while supporting sustainable development and local economic growth in Indonesia and Malaysia.