Cairn to further explore Ravva field

Cairn India and its joint venture partners have decided to take up 4 dimensional (4D) seismic survey of Ravva field in the Krishna-Godavari Basin to further explore oil and gas reserves.

Cairn India has a 22.5 per cent stake in the Ravva joint venture while the remaining is held by ONGC, Videocon and Ravva Oil Malaysia. Cairn India is the main operator.

“Initially, it was estimated that the Ravva field can yield up to 101 million barrels of crude oil but today these fields produce more than 220 million barrels. We are expecting another 50-60 million barrels in Ravva field over the next 4-5 years,” Cairn India sources told Business Standard.

The joint venture would spend $25-30 million (Rs 115-138 crore) on the survey to be conducted over an area of 280 sq km. This would be taken up during December 2009 to March 2010, the sources said. The 4D seismic survey could lead to the identification of fluid fronts, by-passed oil and also help optimise the ongoing reservoir management efforts.

It would help in evaluating and identifying further infill along with enhancing the field’s production capacity, they said.

Ravva field, since 1995, accounts for 7-8 per cent of the domestic crude requirements. The average gross production in the second quarter of the current financial year stood at 42,008 barrels per day.

The joint venture has sold more than 220 million barrels of crude oil since inception and has done a business of over $9 billion.