Indian consortium makes first-ever investment in Abu Dhabi oil field

Our Bureau

Dharmendra Pradhan, Petroleum Minister   -  PTI

New Delhi, February 13

Indian Oil, ONGC and Bharat Petro Resources Ltd will become the first Indian consortium to invest in Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas exploration sector, according to Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan.

Speaking to reporters at a press conference, Pradhan said, “A concession agreement has been signed between an Indian consortium and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) for award of 10 per cent stake in Lower Zakum Offshore oil field during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Middle East.”

An agreement between Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL) and ADNOC to operationalise the filling up of a strategic petroleum reserve cavern in Mangalore has also been signed.

Pradhan said the 10 per cent stake on offer to the Indian consortium is carved out of the 40 per cent stake of the Lower Zakum Offshore oil field that is being auctioned by the Abu Dhabi government. “The remaining 30 per cent of the field will be auctioned but we will get our share before that. This is the first time that an Indian consortium will be investing in Abu Dabhi’s upstream sector.”

The current production from the field is of 400,000 barrels per day and the production is expected to peak at 450,000 barrels per day by 2025. “The Indian share of oil will be 10 per cent or about 2.24 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) at peak production. The average share for India will be 1.75 mpta for next 40 years,” he added.

The cumulative share of the Indian consortium is expected to be 70 million tonnes over the next 40 years. He said India is open to the opportunity of bringing the crude directly to India if feasibility permits.

Commenting on the agreement between ISPRL and ADNOC to invest in the strategic crude oil storage facility in Mangalore, he said, “ADNOC will invest about $400 million by way of storing crude in one ISPRL underground rock cavern in Mangalore of capacity 5.86 million barrels (0.81 million tonne). The period of storage will be 3 years with automatic extension of 2+2 years.”

UAE will be the first country which will participate in India’s strategic petroleum reserves programme, he added.

Published on February 14, 2018
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