Mumbai: Enron now wants nothing but to get out of India. In what seems like a never-ending saga, here is the latest. Last week, it reportedly sold a part of its assets to British Gas for an agreed sum of Rs 1,600 crore.

Enrons assets include: a) 30 per cent stake in Tapti and Panna-Mukta oil and gas field; b) 62.64 per cent stake in CB-OS/1 exploration license. Nevertheless, there is a rider to the deal - it is understood that British Gas will go through with the deal only if it gets operational control of the fields.

Operatorship means preferential operating rights of the fields, which results in additional or incremental revenues to the holder. Granting rights of operatorship was used as an incentive tool by the Indian government to lure foreign companies to invest in oil exploration and development in India, when it had thrown open the sector for private participation in 1993. But as things stand at present, Tapti and Panna-Mukta oil and gas fields is a joint venture, with ONGC and Reliance as other partners holding 40 per cent and 30 per cent stake respectively and can claim rights of ownership.

Reports have indicated that ONGC is keen on acquiring operatorship control of the fields, having written to the government to that effect. Tapti and Panna-Mukta oil and gas fields produced an average of 70 standard million cubic feet of gas per day and 8,200 barrels of oil per day in the year ended 31 March 2001.

Acquiring Enrons stake makes a lot of sense to British Gas because this would strengthen its gas distribution activity in south Gujarat and Mumbai. Gas output from the fields is given to the Gas Authority of India, which is then processed at Hazira via the offshore south Bassein Hazira trunk line. The oil is then sold to Indian Oil Corporation and transported in tankers to its refineries for further processing.

As far as Enron is concerned, post-Tapti, Panna and Mukta, its stake in India will remain confined to the Dabhol project, which too is entangled in controversies. If reports are to be believed, Enron is keen to wash its hand off the Dabhol project as well, indicating that it is keen to move out of India lock, stock and barrel.

Various schemes have been - or are being - formulated to entice buyers to pick up Enrons stake in the Dabhol Power Company. According to the latest scheme, financial institutions, along with the petroleum ministry, have proposed that the prospective buyer of Enron would be given an exclusive distribution zone, currently under the Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB), to sell power produced by it.

Whether this will be accepted by the MSEB is a key issue because if the exclusive zone turns out to be either Pune, Navi Mumbai or Thane, all high-yielding circles, then this could affect MSEBs cash flow, which it would not like to happen.