By IANS,
New Delhi : India will finalise exploration blocks in the eighth round of auction of hydrocarbon assets by December, Petroleum and Natural Minister Murli Deora said Tuesday.
The minister was speaking at a roadshow in London where he has gone for a promotion campaign to attract foreign investors to the annual auction of oil, gas and coal-bed methane blocks. This time, the government is offering 70 explorations blocks, which include 28 in deep water.
Deora said that the entire process of awarding exploration blocks will be completed within four months of receiving the bids. The deadline is Oct 12.
“We expect to finalize the awards by middle of December 2009 and signing of production sharing contracts is expected to take another two months,” he stated in his keynote address Tuesday.
S. Sundareshan, additional secretary in the petroleum and natural gas ministry, said that despite the global recession, he expected there to be a good response to the Indian auction.
“While it is true that some exploration and production companies are reorienting their priorities and strategies to cope up with the challenges of the downturn, they are conscious of the importance of investing in oil and gas which is a sound long-term strategy,” he noted.