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2 US firms to seek gas in Tripura

Stating this, ONGCs Tripura project group general manager Pranab Kumar Adak said in Agartala yesterday that two American companies -- Oakland Oil and Rexwood Corporation -- are likely to start work, in about 3,000 sq km area in northern Tripura very soon. The state has an estimated 400 billion cubic metre prognosticated natural gas reserves.

Adak said that after getting the final report of Unocal, an American private company, ONGC would start deep drilling in specific locations for oil and gas. For basin evaluation, ONGC has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Unocal in 1996 and the American company would submit their report by next month, he added.

Since the starting of exploratory drilling in Tripura in 1972, ONGC had so far drilled 87 wells in seven of the 15 prospective identified locations, he said, adding that a total of 44 wells struck gas, 39 were dry, while four were yet to be tested for their status.

ONGC had intensified its exploration activities in the gas bearing structures along the Indo-Bangla international border with Tripura, where natural gas was found abundantly. The corporation has started deep drilling works (4,000 to 5,000 metres) at Rajnagar, close to the Bangladesh border, he said.

Exploration activities have proven Baramura, Rokhia, Agartala Dome, and Gojalia as the gas-bearing fields, where the established hydrocarbons are entirely non-associated gases, Adak said.

Adak said that discovery of hydrocarbons reserves in the form of natural gas and the prospects of its economic exploitation has opened a new era for industrialisation of the state considering its industrial and economic backwardness and socio-economic conditions.

As of date, ONGC has a gas production potential of about 2.07 million metric standard cubic metre per day. The gas was mainly used in power generation in Tripura so far and proper utilisation of gas was to be encouraged for the overall development of the industrial front in Tripura, he said, adding that gas could also be used as a domestic and industrial fuel in rubber industries, distilleries and for domestic gas supply.

Entrepreneurs were being encouraged to set up plants for manufacture of value-added products like compressed natural gas, middle distillates (diesel and pharmaceutical wax), besides extraction of methanol.

The corporation has also taken the initiative for exploration of gas in many areas in the state as the ongc was committed to meet the demand of gas in the state, the corporation's Tripura project chief pointed out.

He said ONGC had so far incurred an expenditure of Rs 7 billion and revenue realised by the project from gas sales was Rs 7.5 billion. After reduction of the northeastern subsidy, ONGC had contributed Rs 155.9 million towards the state exchequer since its inception.

The Tripura project could not earn revenue to meet its operating expenditure fully till 1997-98. It was expected that by end of 1998-99 this would even out, he said.

Adak said that drilling of 87 wells in Tripura has established gas reserves of 30.10 billion cubic metre as against the prognosticated resource of 390 billion cubic metre. At present, three deep drilling rigs and one workover rig are in operation.

UNI