India’s OVL to submit bids for oil, gas blocks in Tanzania

13th May 2014

By: Ajoy K Das

Creamer Media Correspondent

  

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KOLKATA (miningweekly.com) - India’s ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) is gearing up to bid for offshore oil and gas blocks in Tanzania as part of its strategic plan to increase its energy footprint in Africa.

The company has completed the examination of the blocks on offer and based on the assessment of the blocks, OVL would put in bids for one or two of the blocks before the May 15 deadline for submissions, a company official said.

However, the official refused to disclose whether OVL would make a bid for the blocks alone or in collaboration with an overseas partner, claiming that both options were open and it would be finalised on the last date for submission of bids.

The Tanzanian government has offered seven deep offshore blocks and the Lake Tanganyika North Offshore block. However, these did not include Block 1B and 1C, which have been reserved by the government for development by the Tanzanian Petroleum Development Corporation, in collaboration with an overseas partner.

The bidding process for the Tanzanian blocks had been pending since 2011, when the government had initially offered nine offshore blocks but the bidding had been cancelled and subsequently revived for seven blocks, officials said.

OVL was aggressively scouting for oil and gas resources across geographies to double production from overseas assets by 2017 and was particularly focused on Africa considering that it already had a footprint on the continent and experience gained would enable the company to secure both exploratory as well and producing assets, the official said.

OVL, the overseas arm of ONGC Limited, India’s exploration and production major, had drawn up a prospective plan to ramp up overseas production from 8.6-million tonnes of oil equivalent to 20-million tonnes of oil equivalent by 2017, and 60-million tonnes of oil equivalent by 2030.

However, in December last year, OVL’s overseas plans suffered a setback after it was forced to evacuate its assets in South Sudan in the wake of internal strife in the newly independent nation.

OVL has an equity stake in two oil blocks in South Sudan, through its 25% equity stake in Greater Pioneer Operating Company, producing 37 000 bbl/d, and another 25% in Block 5A producing 4 600 bbl/d.

However, the South Sudan assets have not been abandoned as the Indian government’s External Affairs Ministry was holding talks with officials in South Sudan for early restoration of law and order in the region around the blocks to enable OVL to restart operations, officials said.

Edited by Esmarie Iannucci
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor: Australasia

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