ONGC to invest Rs 2400 cr in Assam

Kalyan Barooah

NEW DELHI, March 8 – The country’s premier oil company ONGC is all set to invest Rs 2400 crore in Assam to boost its declining oil production. This was conveyed to Assam Governor, Shiv Charan Mathur by chairman-cum-managing director, of ONGC R.S. Sharma at a briefing here today.

The chairman of ONGC has conveyed that at the next meeting of the Board of Directors, Rs 2400 crore proposal is likely to be cleared for development of the existing oil wells and new oil exploration activities, he said.

Talking to this newspaper, Mathur said that he has asked the Oil Company to work towards speeding up its production in Assam. On being told that production work has suffered because of insurgency, Mathur said that the State Government would take all responsibility in ensuring security and safety.

“The CMD mentioned that they were facing difficulties owing to insurgency. I have told him that we will be providing all security,” the Governor said.

The presentation by the top ONGC official lasted an hour, in which they briefed the Governor about their operations in the State.

The Governor said the Company has been operating in the State since long but their production has slowed down. “I have asked them to speed up their work so that refining capacity of the State increases,” he said.

Oil India Limited (OIL) is doing good work comparatively,” he remarked.

Only half of over 300 oil wells of ONGC in Assam are currently operational.

The Governor disclosed that he proposed to visit Nazira, the eastern regional headquarters of ONGC after the elections. The CMD has assured him that he too would be present on the occasion.

Meanwhile, ONGC official said the Assam Renewal Project is projected to boost operational efficiency, besides revamping its network of pipelines, modernisation of existing equipment and installation facilities to boost production of crude.

ONGC has projected Assam’s oil production to double in the next couple of years from the current levels of 1.2 million metric tonnes annually.

The ONGC proposes to go for multi-pronged strategies by upgrading technologies and target to double production in Assam in the near future, sources said.

A major chunk of Renewal Project is proposed to be utilised to import latest technology to revive the dry and ageing wells,” the official said.

Assam has over 1.3 billion tonnes of crude oil and 156 billion cubic metres reserves of natural gas. An estimated 58 per cent is yet to be explored. India produces about 30 million tonnes of crude oil annually, Assam accounts for about 5 million tonnes of the country’s total production of 30 million tonnes.