Cairn India drills on


After its success at the deserts of Barmer, Cairn India is moving strongly in exploration of oil in India. It now intends to initiate the survey of the Palar block it won under NELP-VI by December or early 2010. Norway’s Petroleum Geo-Services and Scan Geophysical, Netherland’s Fugro, UK’s Western Geco and France’s CGG have submitted expressions of interests (EoIs) for undertaking a 3D survey over an 800 square km zone on Cairn India’s offshore exploration blocks in Palar Basin, off the southern coast.

Ready for production in Rajasthan’s Barmer oilfield, Cairn India now plans to start exploration in the Palar Basin. It had invited participation from seismic contractors who submitted EoIs. Cairn India and ONGC hold 35 per cent stakes each in the NELP-VI offshore blockwhile the balance 30 per cent is held by Tata Petrodyne.

Incidentally, this is the second phase of exploration in the Palar basin. Cairn completed a 2D survey over 3,100 km during the second quarter of calender 2008. Processing of a portion of the data gathered is complete and the company has decided to conduct a 3D survey. The entire sea bed within the block will be 100 per cent mapped. Here the water depths extend to 80 metres — beyond the initial 800 square km — in the 9,417-sq km block. Point to note is that most seismic companies like to restrict themselves to a depth of 15 meters. Cairn India has been gearing up to another challenge in oil exploration in the country.
According to reports during January 2008 to March 2009, Cairn India operated four of the nine wells in which it participated and three of the operated wells were successful. It included Raageshwari East-1Z in Rajasthan, the 25th discovery in the Barmer Basin.

The RB-4 well in Ravva, where Cairn is also operating, encountered additional oil sands that were later put on stream at 500 barrels per day (bpd) through the Ravva production facilities.
Cairn India CEO Rahul Dhir was happy, “Last year, we achieved a 200 million barrel benchmark in Ravva. Here, we are probably going to target an almost 60 per cent recovery factor, which is incredible by global standards.”

The Ravva field averaged a production rate of 52,539 bpd in 2008-09 (comprising 41,227 bpd and 68 MMscfd of gas). Over the next 12 months, further drilling and seismic programmes are planned. Onshore drilling will get underway in the KG basin with the relevant 3D seismic data in place.