Oil India Ltd said it has started exploring for oil and gas in the Andaman sea. They have begun acquiring seismic data on the shallow water blocks AN-OSHP-2018/1 and AN-OSHP-2018/2, which the company had won in the third round of open acreage licensing policy. Results of the seismic survey would help the firm decide on drilling of wells on the block that could yield oil and gas.
The firm has “deployment of a state-of-the-art multi-purpose seismic data acquisition vessel ‘SW Vespucci’ for the acquisition of 8,400 line-kilometre of 2D seismic data. The exploration efforts in Andaman offshore are being resumed after a long period.” OIL said.
It is the first company to commence 2D and 3D seismic data acquisition in any onshore Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) block in the country and also to complete the committed seismic work programme in an onshore OLAP block.
OIL plans to carry out about 15,000 line-kilometre of 2D and 4,000 square kilometres of 3D seismic as well as drill 66 wells in OALP blocks in the next 3-4 years. They were awarded 21 blocks spread over Assam and Assam Arakan basin, Rajasthan, Mahanadi Onland, Andaman and Kerala-Konkan offshore basins. This consolidated the firm’s position as the leading operator in the North-East with a total acreage area of 17,000 sq km.
“The company has been actively participating in the OALP rounds in an endeavour to intensify exploration and is expecting two more blocks under OALP-V in the state of Assam which would take the acreage position of OIL in the northeast to over 20,000 sq km,” it said.
Apart from consolidating its position in north-east and Rajasthan, OIL has made efforts to carry out exploration in Category II & III sedimentary basins in line with the government’s thrust for exploration.
