ONGC offers 2nd Sokol lot for March

Singapore, Jan 19: Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) has issued a second tender to sell Sokol crude for March loading from Russia's Sakhalin-1 oilfield, tender documents showed on Friday.

State-run ONGC , which has a 20 percent stake in the Exxon Mobil Corp. -led Sakhalin-1 field, is offering 700,000 barrels of the light sweet grade for March 18-21 loading.

The tender closes on Jan. 23 and bids are to remain valid until Jan. 24, the document showed.

ONGC closed on Thursday a similar tender, for a cargo loading during the first 10 days of March. Bids are valid until later on Friday.

Output has been ramping up at the Sakhalin-1 field. Exxon Mobil's Senior Vice President Stuart McGill told Reuters on Wednesday the field would reach its full 250,000 barrels per day (bpd) capacity within a month.

ONGC sold February-loading Sokol crude in its previous tender at a .20-to-6.30-a-barrel premium to Oman/Dubai quotes on a delivered basis, the strongest premium fetched for this grade through tender so far.

Reuters