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Vinod Mathew

AHMEDABAD, Feb. 14

GUJARAT, which had somewhat slipped as a gas producing region following recent finds in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin, may be in for a fresh lease of life, as significant gas finds are on the anvil in many parts of the State.

Leading this revival would be the Kutch offshore gas field, whose exploration right was formerly held by Tullow Oil, UK, but subsequently farmed out to Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL).

According to industry sources, the gas strike in GK-OSJ-1 located in the Gulf of Kutch, off the Jamnagar coast, could be as big as 5 TCF, roughly half the size of the one in the KG basin. One well drilled at the site has indicated recoverable estimates to the tune of 0.37 TCF, it is said. But when contacted by Business Line, the RIL spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.

However, Mr Avinash Chandra, Director-General, Hydrocarbons (DGH), confirmed the gas strike, which he said was not in the same scale as the one in the KG basin.

"The Reliance offshore fields in Kutch, where drilling is still going on, is said to have struck significant gas reserves. While it may not be as big as the KG field, there is no denying that it is going to be commercially viable. One can look forward to official announcements on this over the next four to six weeks," Mr Chandra said.

Tullow Oil, as part of its India strategy, had signed farm-out agreements with Reliance in February 2001. While RIL acquired equity stake ranging between 40 and 50 per cent in five blocks along with operatorship, it was also expected to take the responsibility on the licence expenditure.

The Union Government had approved the RIL farm-in agreements to two fields in Kutch, GK-OSJ-1 and GK-OS/5, and one in the KG Basin, KG-ON-1, in early 2002.

Earlier, while making a presentation on the gas reserves in the Cambay basin at the PetroMinex seminar here on Friday, Mr Chandra said the next round of NELP announcements would feature fresh fields in Gujarat, panning the existing Cambay basin as also the hitherto untapped regions of Saurashtra and Kutch.

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