Indonesia hopes the recent exit of global giants Shell and Chevron from two long-delayed natural gas projects will jumpstart their development, as it races to more than double gas production by 2030.

The Masela and Indonesia Deepwater Development (IDD) projects, together estimated to cost $27 billion, are test cases for Indonesia to show its commitment to attracting oil and gas investment and reversing a decade-long output decline before climate change kills demand for its fossil fuels.

"Our window is short, we are competing with the energy transition," said Benny Lubiantara, a senior official at upstream regulator SKK Migas.

Key hurdles for the two projects include the country's caps on domestic gas prices, limits on gas exports and the high costs for carbon capture and storage - required for new gas projects to help fight global warming.

Last month, Shell (SHEL.L) said it would sell its holding in the Masela project to Indonesia's Pertamina and Malaysia's Petronas, while Chevron (CVX.N) agreed to sell its stake in the IDD project to Italy's Eni (ENI.MI).

（Picture: Veer）