The Hindu Business Line : BG India to invest $140 m in Panna

BRITISH oil major BG India on Thursday said it would, with partners ONGC and Reliance, invest $140 million for expansion and incremental oil recovery from the Panna oil field in India's western offshore.

The development plan comprises construction and installation of two new well-head platforms and associated infield pipelines to connect to the existing processing and compression platform.

Mr Nigel Shaw, CEO, BG India, said, "BG India and partners are proceeding with investment plans to target undeveloped areas of the Panna field. By applying advanced drilling techniques to extract oil and gas from the field's complex reservoir, and with gas rate management, the consortium will be able to access the economic reserves to realise the full potential of the field."

The expansion programme is expected to increase in recovery by a gross 18 million barrels of oil and 74 billion cubic feet of gas. First production is expected in the third quarter of 2005.

BG and Reliance hold 30 per cent stake each in the Panna-Mukta oil and gas and Tapti gas fields and ONGC holds the remaining 40 per cent.

The drilling schedule, which will begin in the second quarter of 2005, includes six horizontal wells from one platform and five horizontal wells from the other platform. In September 2003, the companies had invested a similar amount on the first phase of expansion. Later this year, begin work will begin on expansion of the Tapti gas fields, Mr Shaw said.

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