NELP-VI likely to be wrapped up by Jan-end

The auction of oil blocks under the sixth round of New Exploration and Licensing Policy (NELP VI) is likely to be wrapped up by the end of January, though it was not immediately clear if the 19 controversial bids had also been approved by the Empowered Committee of Secretaries (ECS) which met for the second time on the issue today.

The committee first met on November 23 to decide on the award of 52 blocks under NELP VI but deferred a decision due to "erratic financial packages" offered for 19 blocks, where the government's share of profit petroleum started from a high of 90 per cent and tapered down to 1-2 per cent over the period of the contract. 
 

BLOCKS OF CONTENTION
Bidder	No of blocks
RIL	7
OIL consortium	6
Adani consortium	3
Focus-Newbury	1
GAIL-IOC consortium	1
Naftogaz-RNRL consortium	1

The ECS' recommendations will now head to the Cabinet for approval. Official sources had earlier said there might be renegotiations on the 19 blocks for which the government's share was going down with time.

Some of the top ranked bidders, including Reliance Industries and state-run Oil India Ltd, offered erratic fiscal packages. Though the bids were technically correct, the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons recommended that re-negotiations be carried out on the contentious 19 blocks.

The country's largest upstream company "" Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) "" and its partners have emerged as the top bidder with 25 blocks, including 12 deep-sea blocks. Reliance Industries has been recommended for seven deep-sea blocks. However, all seven blocks offer a decreasing scale of profit petroleum to the government.

Brazilian company Santos will get two deep-sea blocks. Of the six shallow water blocks on offer, Focus-Newbury, Petronas and Petrogas will get one each, while ONGC and its partners will get three blocks. Essar, Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation and Adani will get two onland blocks each and Naftogaz-Reliance Natural Resources Ltd, one.