ONGC, RIL join hands to share resources for deepwater ops on East Coast
The companies would share onshore and offshore processing facilities, drilling rigs, marine vessels, power, pipelines, logging and well services, among other resources
 "ONGC, RIL join hands to share resources for deepwater ops on East Coast")
State-owned explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Reliance Industries (RIL) on Wednesday signed an agreement to share resources for deepwater offshore operations on India's East Coast, the companies said in a joint statement.
This would mainly be across the Krishna Godavari (KG) basin and Andaman offshore.
Under the agreement, called “path-breaking” by the two firms, they would share onshore and offshore processing facilities, drilling rigs, marine vessels, power, pipelines, logging and well services, among others resources.
The agreement, signed at the ongoing India Energy Week (IEW) event in Goa, is likely to enable cost optimisation, faster execution and improved asset utilisation. This comes as upstream companies aggressively boost deepwater exploration efforts to raise oil and gas production.
The partnership is also expected to improve resource utilisation by reducing duplication and idle capacity across operators. It would help in faster execution by improving access to the limited deepwater services available, the companies said.
The collaboration between Reliance and ONGC represents a significant shift from their earlier equation, especially in the KG basin.
In 2013, ONGC had accused Reliance of siphoning off natural gas worth $1.55 billion from its KG basin block. The legal battle is currently pending in the Supreme Court.
However, the latest resource-sharing agreement between the companies was independent of the gas dispute. It would not be a hindrance to the deal, ONGC’s director, exploration, OP Sinha said.
He added that the oil and gas giant is planning to boost exploration efforts, with a key focus on the East Coast, including KG basin, Kaveri, Mahanadi and Andaman blocks.
Separately, ONGC is looking at partnering ExxonMobil for bidding in the upcoming Open Acreage Licensing Round (OALP-X), he said.
The company expects exploration capital expenditure (capex) for the current financial year to stand around ₹10,000 crore, said Sinha.