ONGC to resume drilling in Sunderbans

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will resume offshore drillng at Sunderbans in West Bengal from October.

"The drilling of the first well in Sunderbans was unsuccessful as it was not commercially viable since the amount of gas was low and the rig was shifted from there. Drilling will start on the second well from October," D K Pande, director (exploration) of ONGC, said last night. He was hopeful of finding enough gas to make drilling viable.

ONGC had earlier said it would invest Rs 400 crore for taking up offshore drilling in the Sunderbans. The company had started the drilling in Bengal offshore in March 2006 after a gap of 15 years.