Pradhan unveils DSF-II bid round

Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan today unveiled to investors here India's upcoming second round of auction of discovered oil and gas fields, and said that over 195 million tonnes of hydrocarbon reserves would be put on offer.

The bid dates for the Discovered Small Field round II (DSF-II), where 22 contract areas made up of 60 discovered oil and gas fields would be offered, are yet to be announced.

In a series of tweets, Pradhan said DSF Round-I was a success which has given "immense confidence on the upcoming discoveries under DSF-II".

"A whopping 60 large size discoveries with an in-place reserve volume of over 195 million tonnes of oil and oil equivalent gas is on offer under DSF-II," he tweeted.

India is looking at attracting investors from oil-rich Gulf region to give a push to its almost stagnant oil and gas production. Raising domestic output is key to achieving Prime Minister Narendra Modi's target of cutting oil imports by 10 per cent by 2022.

India imports over 80 per cent of its oil needs.

The 60 discovered fields have been clubbed into 26 contract areas - 15 onland and 11 shallow offshore.

As much as 15,000 barrels per day of cumulative peak oil production and 2 million standard cubic meters per day of cumulative peak gas production is expected from the small fields given out in the first round last year, he said.

Bidding for a separate round to give out oil and gas exploration permits under Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) ended earlier this month.

"The recently concluded OALP bid round & DSF Bid round I were sterling success with 110 bids received for 55 blocks on offer under #OALP and 30 contracts were awarded to 20 companies to establish 45 million tonnes of oil & oil equivalent gas under #DSFRound-I," he tweeted.

Speaking at the investor event, he said incremental demand for energy will majorly come from India, whose oil and gas demand is expected to rise nearly thrice from 229 million tonnes currently to 607 million tonnes in 2040.

"India, therefore, is the most viable and reliable market for energy in the near future," he said.

The government, he said, has taken several measures to overhaul policy framework to ensure energy security, he said listing a liberalised Hydrocarbon Exploration Licensing Policy (HELP) and DSF as some of the progressive measures aimed at facilitating investments in the exploration and production sector.

HELP provides for lesser regulatory oversight and pricing and marketing freedom to operators exploring and producing oil and gas.

"Attended the 'India Event- Showcasing E&P opportunities' organized by @PetroleumMin in Dubai. Briefed about the bright prospects in the upstream oil & gas sector in India & market-driven policy frameworks that encourage investments for exploration in Indian acreages," Pradhan tweeted.

At the event, Pradhan "unveiled the prolific discoveries under upcoming DSF Bid Round-II," upstream regulator DGH tweeted.

"Economic growth & energy consumption have a strong relationship in the growth of an economy. Energy consumption in India in the past decade has increased at a compound annual growth rate of 5% and is expected to rise by more than 4% annually in the future," Pradhan said in another tweet.

Governance and fiscal reforms in the last four years have catapulted India as the most competitive country in South Asia. "Strong economic indices & the acknowledgment of being the fastest growing major economy in the world is a testimony to India's economic stability," he said.