ONGC signs pact with US company

"This MoU envisages creating a steering committee that shall oversee all joint operations in the areas of mutual interest for shale opportunities in India, North America and elsewhere," ONGC chairman and managing director Sudhir Vasudeva said after inking the open-ended MoU here this evening. "The agreement involves data evaluation in the first phase, which is likely to be concluded in six moths. After this, we will build a firmer relationship," he said. The data evaluation would be on Damodar Basin blocks where four exploratory wells had been drilled in cooperation with Schlunberger and had done feasibility study on the rest of the blocks.

"Many of shale sequences in well explored basins are found to be promising. These basins are the Damodar, Cambay, KG and Cauvery. Though the resource estimation is yet to be carried out in these basins, studies have opined that that there is a potential for a successful business venture,"he said. "An integrated study has shown that the Damodar Basin has a potential of about 35 tcf of which 8 tcf is recoverable," Vasudeva said adding "we look forward to carry out similar activities in the Cambay, KG and Cauvery basins".