ONGC signs 6 contracts for Discovered Small Fields in Offshore during DSF-III, 2 contracts under CBM bid round-2021
ONGC has signed 6 contracts for Discovered Small Fields (DSF) in the Offshore under DSF-III bid round, with 3 each for fields in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal. The Energy Maharatna also signed 2 contracts for Fields under Special CBM Bid round-2021 blocks in Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh.
The contracts were exchanged in the presence of Hon’ble Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri, by ONGC CMD Rajesh Kumar Srivastava on 9 September 2022 in New Delhi. Petroleum Secretary Pankaj Jain, DG DGH SCL Das, Joint Secretary (Refineries) Sunil Kumar, and ONGC Director (Offshore) Pankaj Kumar were also present.
Addressing the gathering on the occasion, Union Minister said that in the global conversation on energy, it is unanimously agreed that India will drive the global energy demand within the next two decades. “One big change in the energy narrative is that even global economic superpowers are cutting down their energy consumption. India has navigated its fuel crisis reasonably well amid the global price rise. The government is keen to further ease the challenges of doing business, especially in the energy industry. The opportunity will be showcased again in the India Energy Week launched today,” he added.
Reiterating Hon’ble Minister’s points, Mr Jain asserted that India’s share in global energy consumption is going to rise from 7% in 2019 to 13-14% in 2050. He said that the government has now opened up No-Go areas in Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) for exploration and production and this will enable 1 million sq km of acreage to come to come under exploration. He also informed that the government is taking initiatives to manage the demand side by increasing the efficiencies of energy systems. “India is undergoing a transition in energy. Gas is a transition fuel. We are also moving towards bio-fuels, renewables and hydrocarbons.”
Meanwhile, Mr Das noted that such contracts between the government and national oil and gas companies will enable India to fast-track monetization of discovered fields in a projectized manner. “There are 75 discoveries across 32 contract areas, including two-thirds in offshore. This round gives more incentives as required by the industry.”
The DSF-III bid round 2021 was launched by the Government of India (GOI) on 10 June 2021. A total of 75 fields (Nomination & PSC Regime) under the Discovered Small Field Policy were clubbed in 32 Contract Areas (11 Onland and 21 Offshore) for offer under DSF-III. ONGC participated in the bidding and subsequently won 6 contract areas. These include 4 contract areas as sole bidder and 2 contract areas in partnership with Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL).
The CBM special bid round 2021 was launched by GoI on 22 September 2021 and concluded on 31 May 2022 with a total of 15 blocks under offer. ONGC participated in the bidding of 2 blocks and won 2 blocks one in Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh each.
