With an effort to fulfil its assurance made to foreign investors, the Government has cleared 25 exploration and production (E&P) oil and gas blocks.
These blocks have a total of over $4.6 billion of investment.
The Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI), in its meeting on Monday, cleared these for continued exploration of oil and gas. Nine blocks have been fully cleared and 16 blocks have been cleared with specific conditions. These are out of 31 E&P blocks where work had been stopped on account of security restrictions imposed by Defence Ministry.
“Due to clearances given at this meeting, investment already made to the extent of $2.71 billion will be put to use and further investment to the extent of $1.9 billion will be made in the exploration activities in the next 3-5 years,” an official statement issued after the meeting.
Earlier, out of the total 40 blocks, where E&P activities were stopped for want of clearances from Defence and Commerce Ministries, one block was cleared by the Ministry of Commerce which had overlapped with an SEZ area.
Out of eight ‘No-Go’ Blocks, objected to by Ministry of Defence, five were cleared by CCI at its meeting held on March 20.
Following these clearances, total investment already made of $10.7 billion in these five blocks will be put to use and further investment of $0.6 billion is envisaged in these blocks.
Now, out of total 40 blocks, 31 blocks have been cleared by CCI at its two meetings. These will put to use an investment of $13.42 billion on oil and gas exploration which has already been incurred and it will also bring in an additional investment of $2.5 billion over the next 3-5 years in exploration activities.
The clearances given by CCI will remove the uncertainty relating to these 31 blocks and energise oil and gas exploration activities in the country. Huge investment is expected in these blocks in the coming years based on discovery of hydrocarbons.
Forty Oil & Gas Exploration Blocks, wherein E&P activities were withheld due to non clearances/stringent conditions of Defence and Commerce Ministries, were spread over 3,32,960 sq. kms. area. Consequent upon clearances granted by CCI during in two meetings, 31 blocks covering an area of 2,66,463 sq. km. would be available to the contractors for the E&P activities.
siddhartha.s@thehindu.co.in
shishir.sinha@thehindu.co.in