ONGC onshore output rises in FY17 after falling for three years

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation's (ONGC's) onshore crude oil domestic production witnessed an increase of 2.4% during last fiscal, after falling for three consecutive years.

Onshore production rose to 5.97 million metric tonne (mmt) during FY17 from 5.82 mmt a year ago. The reversal has happened on account of early monetization of discoveries at Ankleshwar, Cauvery (Madnam) and Rajahmundry (Keshnapalli West), among others, shows the latest data available with the oil and gas major.

The production is expected to increase further to 6.05 mmt during the current fiscal backed by similar monetization of Ahmedabad (Gamij) and Mehsana apart from existing fields in Cauvery (Madnam) and Rajahmundry (Keshnapalli West).

The development comes, after the company witnessed a downward trend in onshore crude oil production between FY13 to FY15, when the output came down from 6.95 mmt to 6.07 mmt.

ONGC chairman and managing director Dinesh Sarraf during a media briefing on Monday said that around 60% of the discoveries have been monetized within a year of being discovered. Around 23 new discoveries were made in the recent past, of which 13 were in the onshore wells and 10 were in the offshore wells.

The turnaround during FY17 and better expectations from FY18 seem significant considering that the latest International Energy Agency (IEA) report points out that due to the cost-cutting adopted by the companies, the global oil discoveries fell to a record low in 2016, which is said to be their worst year in the past seven decades.

As per the statistics available with ONGC, the company drilled its highest ever a number of wells which stood at 501 during FY17, up from 392 in FY16 and 401 in FY15.

During FY17, offshore drilling cost per metre reduced by 37% to 2.61 lakh/metre as against 4.16 lakh/metre in FY16 and 4.38 lakh/metre a year earlier.

Further, Sarraf said that Central government's initiative for "Reassessment of Hydrocarbon Resources (HC)" in Indian sedimentary basins which are being undertaken by ONGC is expected to get complete by the end of November this year. Around 100 geoscientists are doing studies in 26 different basins - on land, shallow water, deep water.