ONGC plans Rs11,000 crore investment to redevelop Mumbai High oilfield

Mumbai: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has proposed investment of about Rs11,000 crore in the second phase of redeveloping its ageing Mumbai High oilfields to arrest production decline.

ONGC had earlier invested Rs3,239 crore for redeveloping Mumbai High North and Rs6,579 crore in Mumbai High South. It is now preparing to launch the Rs11,000 crore second phase later this year, ONGC director (offshore) N K Mitra said.

"But for these investments, production from the field would decline to 8-9 million tons by 2010-11 from current output of a little less than 13 million tons," he said, adding, "Approval for the second phase of redevelopments are likely in next couple of months and we would then begin tendering work."

The state-run oil explorer will invest about Rs6,500 crore for redeveloping Mumbai High South which is expected to give an additional 20 million tonnes of oil from 2010 to 2030. ONGC would invest another Rs4,500 crore in Mumbai High North to produce additional 15 million tonnes over the period.

Mumbai High is India's largest oil field and has been in production for over 25 years now.

The second phase of investment would raise the recovery factor from 28 per cent to 34-35 per cent.

Mitra said in the first phase of redevelopment, 23.25 million tons of oil and 6.10 billion cubic meters of gas was added from investments in the northern part of the Mumbai High field. Similarly, the investment in Mumbai High South would yield 33.85 million tons of oil and 10.26 bcm of gas by 2030.

Mitra said ONGC would also invest close to Rs1,000 crore for turnaround of Heera and Neelam fields off the Mumbai coast.

This investment would be besides the Rs2, 305.30 crore being deployed for redevelopment of Heera and South Heera fields to get 10.685 million tonnes of oil and 2.265 bcm of gas from June 2010 to 2030.