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Asia: India regulator urges Reliance to up KG-D6 gas output to 67 mil cu m/d

https://www.chemnet.com   Mar 10,2011 Platts
India's upstream regulator is urging Reliance Industries to drill additional wells in the offshore Krishna Godavari basin in accordance with the field development plan and meet its natural gas output target of 67 million cubic meters a day, S.K. Srivastava, director general of the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons said Wednesday.

Under the development plan Reliance is expected to an drill additional four wells by April taking up the total number to 22 in the KG-D6 fields.

"We have asked the operator to make an all-out effort to meet the target," Srivastava said.

Reliance declined to comment on the issue.

However, sources familiar with the issue said it was too early to say whether production could reach 67 million cu m/d by April.

Indian junior oil minister R.P.N. Singh told parliament last week the current natural gas production from the KG-D6 block is 50 million-51 million cu m/d.

Reliance which stuck a $7.2 billion deal with BP last month for 30% stake in 23 oil and gas blocks including the D-6 block, is also expecting to be able to tap to its partner's technical expertise in deep waters to tackle the reservoir difficulties, Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani told a press conference after signing the deal. However, the transfer of interest to BP has yet to be formally approved by the Indian government, and the deal does not envisage the partnership being implemented until April.

The D6 field, offshore India's east coast, is the country's first deepwater project. Reliance began pumping gas from the field in April 2009. At present, the Indian oil and petrochemical major has a 90% stake in the field, with Canada-based Niko Resources holding the remaining 10%.

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