OVL wins bid for oilfield in Colombia

ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) and Chinese firm Sinopec have won the bid for acquiring a 50 per cent stake in Omimex de Colombia, a US oil firm in Colombia.

This was announced by Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Murli Deora at the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation's golden jubilee celebrations organised in the state.

"The bid amount has been agreed to and it will give us one million tonne of oil every year," Deora said.

The JV is a 50:50 partnership that will help OVL get a 25 per cent stake in the oilfield that produces 20,000 barrels per day. The deal involves an investment of around $800 million, out of which OVL is likely to pump in $400 million.

The balance 50 per cent interest in the oil field lies with Ecopetro, the national oil company of Colombia. "There are many more deals that will be explored together with the Chinese firm," ONGC Chairman and Managing Director RS Sharma said.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had recently approved the OVL-Sinopec joint bid for the acquisition of the US firm.

Omimex de Columbia is a wholly owned subsidiary of Omimex Resources Inc and has onshore production as well as exploration blocks in Columbia with net proven reserves of around 157 million barrels.

In another development, OVL may also partner with the Mittal group for buying a stake in the Satpayev block in Kazakhstan.

"Instead of going alone for buying the stake in Satpayev oil block, we are looking at various options, including bidding through ONGC Mittal Energy Ltd," a company official said.

Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural gas Dinsha J Patel emphasised the importance of utilising the renewable sources of energy along with conventional sources like oil and gas.

He also suggested that the oil and gas major should therefore be renamed as Oil, Natural Gas and Alternate Energy Corporation (ONGAEC).