Reliance gas reserves double to 34.5 tcf
Natural gas reserves in Reliance Industries' prolific D6 block off the east coast have nearly doubled to 35.4 trillion cubic feet, making it India's second largest gas-rich block.
By PTI |
NEW DELHI: Natural gas reserves in Reliance Industries' prolific D6 block off the east coast have nearly doubled to 35.4 trillion cubic feet, making it India's second largest gas-rich block.
"An independent engineering report prepared by Gaffney, Cline and Associates at fiscal year end 2006 has increased the high estimate of gross original natural gas in-place for the D6 Block to 35.4 trillion cubic feet from 11.9 trillion cubic feet in the prior year as evaluated by D&M, a 197 per cent increase," said Canadian Niko Resources, RIL's partner.
Reliance is the operator with 90 per cent interest in the Bay of Bengal deep-sea Block KG-DWN-98/3 (known as D6) off Andhra coast while Niko has the remaining 10 per cent.
State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp's (ONGC) Mumbai offshore block, which houses India's largest gas field Bassein, holds almost double of the reserves estimated in RIL block. Bassein field alone has reserves of 12 tcf.
In D6, 18 consecutive discoveries have been made since 2002 and the all these put together hold 35.4 tcf in-place reserve.
A Niko statement said GCA has further estimated 8.2 tcf reserves in Block NEC-25, off the Orissa coast.
NEC-25 also has same shareholding as D6.
"An independent engineering report prepared by Gaffney, Cline and Associates at fiscal year end 2006 has increased the high estimate of gross original natural gas in-place for the D6 Block to 35.4 trillion cubic feet from 11.9 trillion cubic feet in the prior year as evaluated by D&M, a 197 per cent increase," said Canadian Niko Resources, RIL's partner.
Reliance is the operator with 90 per cent interest in the Bay of Bengal deep-sea Block KG-DWN-98/3 (known as D6) off Andhra coast while Niko has the remaining 10 per cent.
State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp's (ONGC) Mumbai offshore block, which houses India's largest gas field Bassein, holds almost double of the reserves estimated in RIL block. Bassein field alone has reserves of 12 tcf.
In D6, 18 consecutive discoveries have been made since 2002 and the all these put together hold 35.4 tcf in-place reserve.
A Niko statement said GCA has further estimated 8.2 tcf reserves in Block NEC-25, off the Orissa coast.
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NEC-25 also has same shareholding as D6.
Reliance is investing 2.49 billion dollars in bringing to production Dhirubhai-1 and Dhirubhai-3 discoveries out of the 18 made so far, to produce 40 million standard cubic meters per day from mid-2008.
Niko said six gas discoveries in the NEC-25 block in the Mahanadi basin, off Orissa coast, have been declared commercial.
Niko said an oil discovery was made in well MA-1 in D6 Block. Another gas discovery was made in A-1A.
"This new discovery and increased reserve estimates further confirm the D6 Block's reputation as being a world-class petroleum province," it said.
Three rigs would be used to develop and evaluate the oil and natural gas potential of D6 in current fiscal.
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Niko said Development of the natural gas discoveries in the D6 Block continues on schedule with first commercial natural gas production expected in June 2008.
For NEC-25, development of the natural gas fields will commence in the next year with first commercial natural gas deliveries into the Kolkata natural gas market expected in early 2009.
"With total estimates in excess of 8 trillion cubic feet of gross original gas-in-place based on the six wells drilled on the original 1,800 square kilometre 3D seismic prepared by Gaffney Cline and Associates (GCA), Niko is looking forward to the upcoming eight well drilling programme," the statement said.
The drilling programme may commence as early as the third quarter of fiscal 2007 with the first two wells designed to increase reserves in the commercially approved development area and three wells designated for the new 3D seismic area. The remaining three wells are dependant on the results of the first five.
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