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ONGC begins gas production from KG-D5
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
INDIA’S state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) has begun producing gas from its deep-water KG-DWN-98/2 (KG-D5) block in the Krishna Godavari (KG) Basin.
The company is producing around 250,000 cubic metres per day from the block’s first well, local newswire PTI quoted unnamed company officials as saying on March 17. ONGC is model- ling a production ramp-up and aims to increase output to 750,000 cubic metres per day in the coming weeks.
ONGC intends to invest $5bn in the KG-D5 development, with the company anticipating the block lifting overall gas production from a pro- jected 25bn cubic metres in fiscal 2019-2020 to around 35 bcm in 2023-2024. When the project reaches peak production, it is projected to deliver 78,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil and 15 mcm per day of gas.
ONGC intends to drill 34 wells on KG-D5, with 8 of those producing gas, 15 producing oil and the other 11 injecting water into the reser- voir. The block is located 35 km off the coast of Andhra Pradesh in 300-3,200 metres of water.
The block’s Cluster 2 and 2A discoveries are being brought on stream first and are estimated to contain 94.26mn tonnes of crude oil reserves and 73.73 bcm of gas reserves.
India has introduced more attractive poli- cies, such as pricing and marketing freedoms, to encourage developers to tackle more expensive and challenging fields and reduce the coun- try’s dependence on foreign supplies of oil and gas. New Delhi wants to increase natural gas
consumption to 15% of the country’s energy bas- ket by 2030 compared with slightly more than 6% at present. By leaning more heavily on the cleaner-burning fuel the country hopes to tackle chronic levels of urban air pollution.
In order to facilitate this uptick, the govern- ment has unveiled plans to expand the country’s gas pipeline grid from 16,200km at present to 27,000km.™
Indonesia works on low oil price strategy
SOUTHEAST ASIA
POLICY
THE Indonesian government is currently not only trying to understand how the interna- tional oil price collapse will affect the domestic economy but also what opportunities it creates for the country.
Between the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and a price war between oil exporters, following the failure of OPEC+ to agree on production cuts, international benchmark Brent crude has sunk to a four- year low of around $30 per barrel.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo told his cabinet on March 18 to conduct the review with a special focus on subsidised and non-subsidised retail fuel prices.
He said: “We are aware of the fact that the global gas prices have plunged to approx- imately 30 US dollars per barrel. Hence I would like that the impact of this plunge on our economy, especially towards fuel, both subsidised and non-subsidised ones, be calculated.”
He also directed his ministers to fore- cast how long the low oil price environment would last, as “we also have to capitalise on the momentum and opportunities presented by the decline of oil prices on our economy”.
The Indonesian Energy Ministry’s act- ing Oil and Gas Director-General, Ego Syahrial, told reporters on March 9 that
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 11 19•March•2020