Indian PSUs to invest another $6 bn in Mozambique: Oil Min

Indian public sector oil exploration and marketing companies such as ONGC, Oil India Limited and BPCL etc would invest additional $6 billion in Mozambique to strengthen federal ties in the natural gas sector, said minister of petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan.

Speaking at the annual event of International Energy Association (IEA), Pradhan said India is designing ‘National Energy Policy’ which will aim at reducing India’s import dependence in the energy sector and make itself reliant.

The investment from the PSUs would be used in developing a giant gas field off the Mozambique coast and converting the fuel into LNG for export to nations like India

The minister, who returned from a two-day trip from Mozambique said the first LNG from the Rovuma Area-1 in the country block is targeted for 2018-2019.

ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), Oil India Ltd and a unit of Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) together hold 30 per cent interest in Rovuma Area-1, which is estimated to hold recoverable gas reserves of up to 75 trillion cubic feet.

"We have invested more than $6 billion so far and another $6 billion will be invested by 2019 to develop Rovuma Area-1 field," he said here.

An estimated $18.4 billion will be required to bring first set of discoveries in Rovuma Area-1 on to production and convert that gas into liquid (liquefied natural gas or LNG) for ease of shipping to consuming nations like India.

The project with capacity to produce 20 million tonnes of LNG annually would be the world's largest LNG export site after ExxonMobil-run Ras Laffan in Qatar.

"I had a very successful tour to Mozambique... we are getting full cooperation from the Mozambique government for early development and monetisation of Rouvma Area 1," he said.

Pradhan said the block consortium is talking to Indian buyers like state gas utility GAIL for selling LNG.

Rovuma Area-1 Offshore Mozambique Block (Block Area 1) is located along the coasts of northern Mozambique and southern Tanzania in the Indian Ocean.