(Drillship- Edited Image Courtesy: ONGC's KG-DWN-98/2 EIA  Report)

 

In January this year, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) said it was “responding emphatically to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative” (MI3). The Company claimed this while announcing its energy R&D tie-up with seven Indian Institute of Technology (IITs).

What ONGC did not disclose was that it is fast-tracking certain projects to ramp up substantially oil and gas production, thereby giving a leg-up to MI3. 

ONGC had earned bad name for numerous project cost and time overruns over the years. This led to Government-forced privatization of its several discoveries in the nineties, triggering a scam. This public enterprise is lately shedding its elephantine inertia in the domain of project planning & execution. It is doing this with the prodding from NDA Government as well as with a bit of self-realization. 

Among the major projects being pursued by ONGC, the most prominent one is Rs 50,358-crore project for development of offshore KG-DWN-98/2 block in Krishna Godavari (KG) basin off the coast of Andhra Pradesh (AP).

It has squeezed the time gap between grant of terms of reference (TOR) for environment impact study (EIA) on this project (dated 6th January) to filing post-public hearing request for grant of environmental clearance(9th April) to three months! This is perhaps shortest gestation period of its type for any project in any sector. 

Petcoke-Image Courtesy: HMEL

 

It is a residue-to-riches mantra for Indian refineries-cum-petrochemical companies that are strapped for natural gas and deterred by high price of gas and liquid fuels. They are focusing on petcoke, a residue of refining process, as a fuel for captive power generation and as an avenue for manufacturing certain chemicals. 

Petcoke is thus emerging as driver of economic efficiency for Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited (HMEL), Bharat Oman Refineries Limited, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), etc.   

The comparative economics of generating electricity from petcoke is so appealing to them they are putting their gas or liquid fuels-fired boilers and gas turbines in the standby mode!

(Edited  Image Courtesy: Indus Gas)

 

It is now the turn of fringe players to be counted in the great Indian quest for domestic natural gas, which has the potential to catalyze ‘Make in India’ Initiative.

Ajay Kalsi group companies Focus Energy Limited (FEL) and Indus Gas Limited (IGL) are bracing to ramp up substantially gas production from RJ-ON/6 block in Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan. 

FEL has estimated an investment of Rs 11,050 Crores for next phase of appraisal and roduction of natural gas from Block RJ-ON/6, which is spread over 2,176 sq. km in Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan. Of the total area, 176 sq. km referred to as SGL Field started production of gas in July 2010.  

FEL, which has so far drilled 11 exploratory wells, has now proposed to drill 40 appraisal wells, 372 development or production wells in area other than SGL field. It also intends to set up gas processing facilities with capacity to process 65 million standard cubic feet (MMSCF)/day of natural gas. 

As put by a FEL document dated 29th April 2015, “We are the Operator of the Block to carry out exploration & production activities. In respect of Block RJ-ON/6 Area of 2000 sq. km., we are in process of appraisal activities and Field Development Plan will be submitted to Govt. Of India, MOP&NG in the 3rd Quarter of FY 2015-16 and thereafter the Mining Lease will be granted for carrying out development and production activities.”