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Indian consortium wins Adnoc deal

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has awarded exploration contract to a consortium of two India companies Bharat Petroleum and Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) following a competitive bid round.
The oil giant said the consortium will control 100 per cent in the Abu Dhabi Onshore Block 1 and will invest Dh626 million in the project. The consortium will focus on conventional oil and gas opportunities in the block, which includes already discovered but undeveloped fields and covers a large area around Ruwais.
It will develop and produce any discoveries while Adnoc has the option to hold 60 per cent stake in the production phase.
Of late, Adnoc has signed contracts worth billions of dirhams with Indian companies as the UAE enhances energy links with India, a key growth market for crude, refined and petrochemical products.
In November last year, the Supreme Petroleum Council approved Dh486 billion capital expenditure plan for Adnoc spanned over 5 years. This plan will increase oil production capacity to five million barrels a day by 2030.
In February 2018, an Indian consortium of three companies, comprising ONGC Videsh, IOC and Bharat PetroResources Ltd., a subsidiary of Bharat Petroleum Corporation, was awarded a 10 per cent participating interest in Abu Dhabi's offshore Lower Zakum Concession.
Adnoc said the onshore exploration block awarded to the Indian consortium will target conventional oil and gas opportunities in the area. However, the Onshore Block 1 area also covers the separate Ruwais Diyab Unconventional Gas Concession. There, Total is conducting an exploration and appraisal phase, targeted exclusively at tight gas resources in the Diyab formation, which will then be followed by a 40-year production term.

Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Adnoc Group CEO; Duraiswamy Rajkumar, chairman and managing director of Bharat Petroleum; and Sanjiv Singh, chairman of Indian Oil Corp., signed the agreement, which will be spanned over 35 years.
Al Jaber said the consortium was selected after a very competitive bid round. "The open bidding process represents a major advance in how Adnoc is accelerating the exploration and development of Abu Dhabi's substantial untapped hydrocarbon resources as we continue to maximise value," he added.
The Abu Dhabi-based energy giant said the award of Onshore Block 1 concludes Abu Dhabi's first-ever competitive block bid round, which saw very competitive proposals submitted for the geographical areas initially offered in April 2018.
The company has awarded Offshore Blocks 1 and 2 to a consortium comprised of Eni and PTT Exploration and Production Public Co.; Onshore Block 3 to Occidental Petroleum; and Onshore Block 4 to Inpex Corp.
- waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com