ONGC signs pact with ExxonMobil to share expertise

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Ltd said on Tuesday it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with US petroleum giant ExxonMobil to undertake joint technical studies and cooperate in frontier areas.

The areas will include deep water and other petroleum exploration licence (PEL) blocks of ONGC in east and west coast besides open acreages for joint bidding.

The MoU was signed on the sidelines of IHS-CERAWeek by ONGC Director (Exploration) R K Srivastava and ExxonMobil's CEO for South Asia William P Davis. Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan, Petroleum Secretary M M Kutty and ONGC Chairman and Managing Director Shashi Shanker were also present on the occasion.

The work under the MoU will be carried out in three phases. This will lead to a joint technical study for potential collaboration areas.

"We welcome the opportunity to work with ONGC and apply our collective expertise to be an even bigger part of India's bright energy future," said Michael Deal, ExxonMobil's Vice President for Asia Pacific.

Shanker said: "This meaningful partnership with ExxonMobil will be a step towards unlocking value in ONGC's PEL offshore blocks, study open acreage areas and enable us to get closer to meeting the country's energy aspirations."

ONGC is India's largest integrated oil and gas company with operations in upstream exploration and production besides downstream segments. It contributes about 70 per cent of domestic oil and gas production.

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