ONGC to spend Rs. 16,200 crore to drill 45 wells in KG-Basin.

State-owned ONGC Ltd. is set to develop 45 drilling wells at a block in Krishna-Godavari basin at an estimated cost of over Rs. 16,000 crore.

The oil and gas major has approached the Ministry of Environment and Forests seeking clearance for preparing terms of References, according to the minutes of meeting of Expert Appraisal Committee.

'It is proposed to carry out development drilling in Northern Discovery Region by drilling 45 numbers of wells including oil, gas and water injection wells. The proposed drilling locations are more than 25 kms distance i.e. 12 nautical miles away from the coast line. Total cost of the project is Rs. 16,200 crore,' according to the minutes.

ONGC will begin production in 2019, with a peak output of 4.5 million tonnes a year, 20 per cent more than the previous estimates. The oil discovery in Krishna Godavari basin block KG-DWN-98/2 or KG-D5 will be the first large oil production from the east coast. The block also has 10 gas discoveries, ONGC had earlier said. KG-D 5 sits next to Reliance Industries' producing KG-DWN-98/3 or KG-D6 area.

KG-D5 is divided into a Northern Discovery Area (NDA) and Southern Discovery Area (SDA).


ET