Vedanta to invest USD 245 mn in 10 oil, gas blocks

Vedanta Ltd Wednesday said it will invest USD 245 million for finding oil and natural gas over the next 3-4 years in the 10 areas it won in the latest licensing round.

The firm won 10 blocks - 7 onshore and 3 offshore, in the Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) Round-II and III, winners of which were announced on Tuesday.

Vedanta had won 41 out of the 55 blocks in OALP-1 bid round and committed to invest USD 551 million.

"Vedanta Ltd has been successfully awarded 10 exploration blocks in sedimentary basins throughout India pursuant to the OALP at a total bid cost of USD 245 million," the firm said in a statement.

The company will enter into 10 revenue sharing contracts (RSCs) with the government.

"Following the signing of the RSCs, a licence permitting exploration, development and production operations of all types of hydrocarbons will be granted pursuant to the terms of the relevant RSC in relation to each Block," it said.

The exploration period shall consist of two phases -- the initial exploration phase and the subsequent exploration phase. In total, the exploration period will be a duration of six years for all Blocks, subject to any extension granted.

The development and production period of each contract will be a maximum of 20 years from the date of grant of the petroleum mining lease following discovery of previously unknown deposits of hydrocarbons and approval of the relevant field development plan, subject to any extension granted.

"The group believes that the transaction complements its existing strategy to focus on production growth. These blocks awarded under OALP bid round II & III, complement the 41 blocks secured in OALP bid round I. The OALP bid rounds provide an opportunity for the Group to acquire new acreages from additional sedimentary basins of India and utilize synergies from the Blocks already secured," the statement said.

The objective of licensing the Blocks is to acquire fresh seismic data and drill exploration wells to establish resources and reserves of oil and/or gas.

"The bid cost of USD 245 million represents the company's total committed capital expenditure on the Blocks during the exploration phase and will be met by using the Group's existing cash resources. It is expected that this capital expenditure will occur over a period of approximately three to four years," it said.