The present study focuses on changes in Indonesia after the fall of Soeharto in 1998. It examines a dispute involving the central government, a provincial government, and Caltex Pacific Indonesia (CPI), a multinational company based in Riau, over an oil block called Coastal Pekanbaru Plains (CPP). After democratization and decentralization, a new pattern of Indonesian politics has been in the making, the characteristics of which enable provincial politicians to create political networks with those who are powerful in Jakarta. Such political networks—initiated from the provincial level—did not exist within the New Order state. However, the CPP conflict illustrates their limits. The governor of Riau, Saleh Djasit, in challenging a policy decided by the central government, proved less able to set up a political network with powerful local and national politicians. Without substantial political backing, his challenge led to defeat and the dispute directly resulted in a climate inhospitable to foreign investors.