Cairn India Limited to discuss with Centre on oil exploration

Bangalore, Dec 6 (UNI) Cairn India Limited, engaged in crude oil and natural gas exploration and production, is negotiating with the Centre to identify third parties for evacuating the crude oil from its site in Rajasthan.

Disclosing this to newsmen here, Company's Exploration Director Richard Heaton said the first phase of the development project targetted the Mangala fields of Rajasthan where the commencement of commercial crude oil production was expected during 2009. This would be followed by development of other fields such as Bhagyam and Shakti fields within six months and the Aishwariya field within one year of commencement of commercial production from the Mangala field. There would be five-fold growth in crude oil production by 2010 with 1,50,000 barrels per day of oil equivalent as compared to the present per day production of 24,000 barrels of oil equivalent.

Asked whether the Indian Oil Company was also included under the third party category, he declined to respond saying that it was still at discussion level.

He said the company was entering capital market with a public issue of 328,799,675 equity shares of Rs 10 for cash at a premium to be decided through a 100 per cent book building process. The issue opens on December 11 and closes on December 15, he added. The company would utilise funds from this issue, among others, to develop refineries in Rajasthan block as also additional drilling in Ravva and Cambay fields in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat states respectively.

He said the life of refineries at Rajasthan, which had reserves worth around US Dollars 50 billion or Rs 2.25 lakh crores, was expected to last till 2041.

UNI SR MSP TS1518