ONGC to open Vindhyan Basin in Madhya Pradesh for gas production

State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) is set to commercialise the Vindhyan Basin in Madhya Pradesh for gas production.

This would be the ninth producing Basin of India and the eighth by ONGC. The eighth Indian Basin -– the Bengal Basin -– was dedicated to the nation on December 20, 2020.

"Exploratory well 'Hatta#3' was drilled with the objective to establish commercial potential through detailed testing to acquire reservoir-specific data," the company said in a statement. The well is in the Son valley sector of Madhya Pradesh. On testing, the well-produced over 62,044 cubic meters per day gas, thus confirming the production potential of Proterozoic Basin for the first time in India.

Active exploration in the Vindhyan Basin began with the acquisition of seismic data in the late 1980s. The very first well 'Jabera#1', drilled in the basin in 1991, produced gas of around 2,000 cubic meters per day. Efforts of ONGC spanned over the next 25 years, with drilling of 26 exploratory wells in the Son and Chambal valley sector of the Vindhya Basin, notwithstanding 14 of them providing sub-commercial gas flows in the Son Valley, it said.

"Finally, continued efforts have now paid off – the Vindhyan Basin is close to becoming the ninth producing Basin of India. ONGC is fully geared to consolidate this development. With belief in prospectivity, it has already acquired 5 Blocks under OALP rounds on the same play trend," the statement said.

ONGC further said that it is now working out various monetisation options for the gas including direct marketing to industries in the vicinity, cluster-based gas production through cascade systems, CNG bottling at well-head as the gas is of high calorific value and transportation using available facility.

ONGC CMD Alka Mittal said: “It’s a matter of great pride for ONGC as well as the oil & gas industry of the country to realise this aspiration of adding yet another Basin with production potential on India’s energy map”.

On Wednesday, the company had said that it will undertake two-dimensional (2D) seismic survey of the un-appraised areas of India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

It has already started preparation for acquiring the proposed 2D Seismic Data.

The development comes at a time when India is aiming to reduce its import dependence for its energy requirements as 85% of the country's energy demand is met through imports.

On Thursday, shares of the company on the BSE closed at ₹163.90, higher 1.02% from its previous close.