Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has offered three blocks for oil and gas exploration as part of the country’s third round of auctions in 2023.

The latest tender is part of the Asian nation’s efforts to boost its reserves, reported Reuters.

In an announcement, Noor Arifin Muhammad, an official of the ministry, said the government is offering the Akimeugah I and Akimeugah II blocks.

The two blocks are situated on land near the provinces of South Papua and the Papua Mountains.

According to the news agency, Akimeugah I and Akimeugah II are each estimated to have 15 billion barrels of oil equivalent (bboe) of gas resources.

The third block offered as part of the latest auction was the Bobara exploration block off the coast of West Papua.

Around 6.8bboe of oil and gas are thought to be present in Bobara.

Earlier this year, the Indonesian Government said it plans to offer ten oil and gas blocks for exploration in 2023.

This year’s second auction was kicked off in July when Indonesia auctioned the Natuna D-Alpha exploration block in East Natuna.

One of the largest gas deposits in the world, Natuna D-Alpha is thought to contain 230 trillion cubic feet of gas.

According to Noor, the bidding procedure is still going on for Natuna D-Alpha and the other blocks in the second round.

Recently, Italian oil and gas company Eni reached an agreement to buy US-based Chevron’s stakes in assets offshore Indonesia.

The deal includes Chevron’s 62% stake in the Ganal production-sharing contract (PSC) and Rapak PSC, and 72% in the Makassar Straits PSC.