ONGC to invest Rs 950 cr for tapping gas

 The investment is for exploration and development of coal bed methane (cbm) in six blocks in Jharkhand and West Bengal, and the countdown for the 1st commercial production of cbm gas in India has begun with work slated to start from June onwards, an official release by the company said.

 An estimated peak production of 7.84 lakh cubic metres of gas per day is being targeted from the proposed development wells.

 Out of the projected expenditure, Rs 557 crore has been earmarked for the development of early cbm production in central Parbatpur area of Jharia block.

 An expenditure of Rs 392 crore has been approved for drilling, completion and testing of 22 pilot wells in Jharia, Bokaro and north Karanpura cbm blocks, with a completion schedule of 31 months, from the date of award of tender.

 ONGC would deploy advanced drilling technology - horizontal-inseam-multilateral drilling technique for the first time in India, after its proven success by cbm operators in Australia and USA, the release said.