By IANS
New Delhi : State-owned petroleum firms Indian Oil Corp (IOC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL) plan to pick up 12.5 percent equity in Mukesh Ambani-promoted Reliance Industries Ltd’s (RIL) oil and gas block in East Timor.
Both companies have obtained approval from their respective boards to acquire equity in Reliance’s asset as partners, a senior IOC official said.
The approval of the IOC and OIL boards was given after their technical teams expressed satisfaction on the data made available by Reliance, the official added.
Reliance will hold majority stake in the block and will be the operator of the area, which is spread over 2,384 sq km.
In May 2006, Reliance won the bid to explore oil and gas in East Timor. The company has now signed an agreement to this effect.
The company will explore the offshore area in contract area “K” that has proven reserves in the Australian North West Shelf and is adjacent to the Timor Sea.