Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and it UK partner BP Plc have surrendered nine out of the 21 oil blocks in the KG-D6 basin due to poor prospects. The joint venture would now concentrate on increasing oil and natural gas production from these wells.
Speaking at the ongoing Petrotech 2012 conference, Sashai Mukandan, Regional President and head of Country, India at BP, said BP was focussed on finding more oil and gas from the blocks that it holds in partnership with RIL. He, however, did not elaborate further on the reasons for surrendering these oil wells.
The joint venture partners will now concentrate on reviving output from the existing wells. The production from these wells has decreased from to 22 million metric standard cubic meters per day from 53 mmscmd that it recorded in March 2010.
Meanwhile, India’s largest oil refiner RIL on Monday said it would increase the refining capacity of the Jamnagar refineries and would double its profit in the next 4-5 years
“Our Chairman Mukesh Ambani has said that Reliance will be doubling operating profit. Downstream oil refining and marketing are very much part of this plan, RIL CEO, Refining Marketing, Tony Fountain said on the sidelines of Petrotech 2012.
RIL operates 33 million tonne domestic-tariff area or DTA refinery that sells most of its products to domestic market and 29 million tonne only-for-exports or Special Economic Zone unit.
“We are very much looking at all sorts of plans for expanding refining capacity. We are looking at expansion options at both DTA and SEZ refineries”. Fountain said.
RIL was also looking at refinery configuration to produce more value added products.
Fountain however refused to provide details of investment or expansion that the company plans to up the capacity at its refineries.
RIL is setting up a $ 4 billion petroleum coke gasification project that will produce synthetic gas that will replace expensive Liquified Natural Gas as fuel at the refinery.
Earleir in June Mukesh Ambani announced investments of US $ 12 billion in the company’s core petrochemical and oil and gas businesses as well as in the new sectors of retail and telecom to double operating profits in 4-5 years.
Regarding its retail fuel retailing business which is been shut for years now for want of level playing field, Fountain said “itcontinues to keep most of its 1,452 petrol pumps shut in the absence of a level playing field with its main public sector competition.