The Hindu Business Line : Drill research ship to sail on May 3

MR MURLI DEORA (centre), Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Mr M.B. Lal, Chairman and Managing Director, HPCL, and Dr Timothy S. Collett, of the US Geological Survey, on board the research vessel JOIDES Resolution in Mumbai on Sunday. — Shashi Ashiwal

Mumbai , April 30

The scientific research drill ship `JOIDES Resolution,' hired by India to explore deep-sea gas hydrate reserves, would sail from here on May 3 to commence drilling operations.

Addressing the media on Sunday, Mr Murli Deora, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, said that total prognosticated resource of offshore gas hydrates in India was 1,894 trillion cubic metres, 1,900 times the country's current gas reserves.

The exploration would be conducted under the National Gas Hydrate Program (NGPH) of the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons. Even if the country is able to tap one per cent of the estimated gas hydrate reserves, our energy requirement for the coming decades can be met, he said.

The drilling and exploration would be carried out by Indian and international scientists. Dr Timothy S. Collett, Research Geologist of the US Geological Survey, chief scientist of the exploration team, said the ship would explore prospective gas hydrate fields along the western coast in Konkan, the Krishna Godavari basin, Mahanadi and areas around the Andaman seas.