ONGC Assam Asset scripts success story

SIVASAGAR, April 12 – ONGC Assam Asset, after long 25 years, has been able to reach the elusive MoU target of oil and natural gas production despite all odds endemic to the region.

Brimming with confidence, ED-AM, Assam Asset Dr PSV Rao told mediapersons at Nazira recently that with tremendous support from a dedicated team of ONGCians, media, civil administration and public, ONGC Assam Asset has achieved 100.1% achievement by producing 1.150 MMT of oil against a target of 1.149 MMT during the financial year 2010, while in gas production it achieved 435.38 MMSCM against a target of 443.17 MMSCM which is however off set by sales of gas to the tune of 235.16 MMSCM against a targetof 220MMSCM.

ONGC has over 1 lac MMSCM of natural gas in the region, the Asset Manager said.

Assam Asset has drilled over 36 wells during the last financial year, which itself is a record considering the depth of over 3000 ft to 4000 ft a well in the region has to be drilled on an average, said Pallov Bhattacharjee, DGM CC, Assam Asset.

The Assam Asset Management clarified that gas production has been kept at par with the requirement of the consumers like GAIL, NRL, TEs and Assam Gas Company and can be boosted at a short notice . Reaching gas production target is not a problem as a number of gas producing wells have been put on suspension as flaring up natural gas is no longer permissible, said BK Boruah, GGM, Drilling.

Gas production and sales in this part of the country is affected by non-avilability of cross country gas grid, lack of commercial consumers and remote and isolated areas the producing wells are located in. Captive power generation also touched a new high with generation of 48944 MWH , 19% above the target. The equipment availability in the region was 98.8% and oil gain from work-over rigs is higher than envisaged. During the period, two new group gathering stations at Rudrasagar have beencommissioned besides commissioning 12 gas lines from Lakhimoni to Lakwa GCP. ONGC has finalized plans for setting up a super- specialty 300-bedded modern hospital at Sivasagar for which the district administration has allotted a plot of land near the proposed Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology at Palasani.

ONGC CMD (i/c) Ajit Hazarika , recently convened a meeting of ONGC higher officials at Delhi to finalize plans for setting up the multi-specialty hospital which is expected to fulfill a long standing demand of the peole of the region and is expected to be of seminal importance to the vast number of cancer patients that go out for treatment in Mumbai, Delhi and Vellore, etc., is places in large numbers. Ongc Assam Asset has spent over Rs 25 crore on state road building in addition to the roads in the operational areas besides spending over Rs 1.5 cr in CSR projects during the year, the team management informed.

The meeting was attended among others by RD Vankar, GGM, Support Manager, ONGC PK Hazarika , Sanjeev Boruah, Sridhar Vyas and others.