Government empowers DGH to promote oil expoloration

New Delhi, Sep 8 (UNI) To promote exploration and production activities in the country, the government has vested the Director General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) with more powers especially for garnering data from oil companies to create a National Data Repository (NDR).

The Government has delegated certain powers vested in it under Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Act, 1948 and Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules, 1959 as amended time to time to the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), and official statement said.

The objective of the delegation of statutory powers is to empower DGH so that it can effectively oversee ever increasing exploration and production activities in India with more areas coming under exploration with successive rounds of NELP and CBM.

Delegation of powers to DGH mainly covers monitoring of upstream activities including CBM operation, review and monitoring of exploration and development programmes, reservoir monitoring with a view to optimise hydrocarbon recovery, maintain data repository, lay down norms for declaration of hydrocarbon discoveries and monitor Government revenue such as royalty and profit petroleum.

To exercise this delegation, DGH, with the approval of Central Government will prepare transparent guidelines.

However, in respect of the contracts, signed by the Government DGH will exercise the powers in accordance and consistent with respective contracts.

The Government has also amended Rule 19 of the P&NG Rules to enable the Government / DGH to get all data from licensees/lessee, free of cost as and when they are acquired and become available.

All non-proprietary data can be disclosed by the Government at any time and proprietary data can be disclosed with the consent of the licensees / lessee at any time and after 5 years from the date from which such data become available or termination of license / lessee whichever is earlier at the discretion of the Government.

The above steps have been taken by the Government to promote exploration and production activities in the country, strengthen DGH with more powers and enable creating a National Data Repository (NDR) by facilitating DGH to get data from NOCs and private companies for all acreages held by them from time to time.

This will also encourage effective use of available data in the country in promoting efficient exploration and production.

UNI RT CS HS1935