ONGC to drill well in Bihar
ONGC) is planning to drill a well in Bihar this year to look for oil and gas. A commercial discovery will not just put the state on India's oil map but also open up for exploration the entire Ganga basin stretching from Bihar to Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.
Sushma Rawat, director (exploration) at ONGC, told ET that the company has acquired 3D seismic data for 300 sq km for its block in Samastipur, Bihar, and is now planning to drill two exploratory wells. The first drilling will be done this year and may cost ₹30-35 crore, she said.
Data from the first well's drilling will help guide the company's plans for the rest of the exploration block, including the planned drilling of the second well.
Exploratory drilling was last undertaken in Bihar about half a century ago. Since then, a lot of seismic data have emerged and drilling of wells can help calibrate that.
«This one well will open up the entire basin for future exploration, of which we are very hopeful,» said Rawat. And if a commercial discovery is made, it will change the «energy scenario as well as lead to the development of local industry around the oil and gas production area».
ONGC, India's largest oil and gas producer, also plans to drill an exploratory well in another block in the Ganga basin in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, but has been facing hurdles in acquiring land.
Both blocks in Samastipur and Ballia were obtained in the fourth Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) round a few years ago.
«We don't require a very big patch (for well). It's just 130x130 or
