ONGC Videsh consortium strikes oil in Egypt for second time

New Delhi, Nov 14 (UNI) A consortium led by the overseas arm of country's biggest explorer Oil&Natural Gas Corporation, ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) has struck oil in the Gulf of Suez off Egypt which is estimated to have reserves of 800 barrels per day (bpd).

The discovery in well North Ramadan-2 (NR-2) is the second oil find in the block, the company said on its website.

The first discovery was made in another well, NR-1A ST1, which produced oil of about 3,000 bpd during the testing phase.

The second discovery was made after drilling NR-2 at a depth of 11,700 feet, it said.

The block is operated by OVL and IPR Red Sea Inc of Egypt. The two firms have 70 per cent and 30 percent interest, respectively, in the North Ramadan concession.

The agreement between the two companies was signed in 2005.

The consortium is in the first phase of exploration in North Ramadan, with one more exploratory well to be drilled this month.

UNI AK SG PM1432