July 22, 2020: Vedanta Ltd plans to invest around 6 bln rupees in an exploration and production project in onshore block AA-ONHP-2017/14, primarily located in Karimganj, Hailakandi, and Cachar districts of Assam, sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Cogencis.
It is one of the hydrocarbon blocks the company had won in the first round of auctions under the open acreage licensing policy.
The block, with an area of around 1,720 sq km, has just 2.5 sq km lying in Mizoram’s Kolsib district. None of the project activities are planned in the part of block in Mizoram.
Vedanta, which operates its hydrocarbon business under the Cairn Oil and Gas division, plans to drill and test a total of 24 exploratory and appraisal wells as part of the project, one of the sources said.
Exploratory and appraisal wells are drilled to establish the presence and quantity of hydrocarbons.
If oil and gas are discovered and found to be commercially viable, the company plans to bring the block to early production by setting up early production units to process fluids from successful exploratory and appraisal wells. Vedanta estimates early production of up to 8,000 barrels per day of crude oil and 1.6 mscfd of natural gas through this project.
These project activities are likely to be carried out in the block over the next 10-12 years and Vedanta plans to supply crude oil from the block to Indian Oil Corp Ltd’s Guwahati refinery around 300 km away from the block, another source said.
Vedanta expects to receive all necessary clearances for the exploratory project in the next couple of months, and plans to start the project soon thereafter.
Vedanta is the largest private sector oil and gas producer in India and was the biggest winner in the first auction under the open acreage licensing policy in 2018. The company bid for all 55 blocks on offer and ended up winning 41.
Source: Cogencis
