<P> Brunei Shell Petroleum (BSP), a joint venture owned in equal shares by the Brunei Government and the Royal Dutch / Shell group of companies, is the chief oil and gas production company in Brunei . It also operates the country's only refinery . BSP and four sister companies constitute the largest employer in Brunei after the government . BSP's small refinery has a distillation capacity of 10,000 barrels per day (1,600 m / d). This satisfies domestic demand for most petroleum products . </P> <P> The French oil company Elf Aquitaine became active in petroleum exploration in Brunei in the 1980s . Its affiliate Elf Petroleum Asia BV has discovered commercially exploitable quantities of oil and gas in three of the four wells drilled since 1987, including a particularly promising discovery announced in early 1990 . Recently, UNOCAL, partnered with New Zealand's Fletcher Challenge has been granted concessions for oil exploration . Brunei is preparing to tender concessions for deep water oil and gas exploration . </P> <P> Brunei's oil production peaked in 1979 at over 240,000 barrels per day (38,000 m / d). Since then it has been deliberately cut back to extend the life of oil reserves and improve recovery rates . Petroleum production is currently averaging some 200,000 barrels per day (32,000 m / d). Japan has traditionally been the main customer for Brunei's oil exports, but its share dropped from 45% of the total in 1982 to 19% in 1998 . In contrast, oil exports to South Korea increased from only 8% of the total in 1982 to 29% in 1998 . Other major customers include Taiwan (6%), and the countries of ASEAN (27%). Brunei's oil exports to the United States accounted for 17% of the total exported . </P> <P> Almost all of Brunei's natural gas is liquefied at Brunei Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plant, which opened in 1972 and is one of the largest LNG plants in the world . Over 82% of Brunei's LNG produced is sold to Japan under a long - term agreement renewed in 1993 . The agreement calls for Brunei to provide over 5 million tons of LNG per year to three Japanese utilities . The Japanese company, Mitsubishi, is a joint venture partner with Shell and the Brunei Government in Brunei LNG, Brunei Coldgas, and Brunei Shell Tankers, which together produce the LNG and supply it to Japan . Since 1995, Brunei has supplied more than 700,000 tons of LNG to the Korea Gas Corporation as well . In 1999, Brunei's natural gas production reached 90 cargoes per day . A small amount of natural gas is used for domestic power generation . Brunei is the fourth - largest exporter of LNG in the Asia - Pacific region behind Indonesia, Malaysia, and Australia . </P>

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