By Rahul Karmakar
The ONGC had last year proposed a leaner subsidiary to manage its Assam Asset operations spanning Assam, Nagaland and Tripura. The move is the outcome of dwindling production and higher overheads in the Northeast, with crude output down to 1.1 million metric ton per annum (MMTPA) during the past decade.
Non-Congress political parties and students’ bodies have opposed this proposal, whipping up anti-ONGC passion for the oil major’s perceived bid to wind up operations and sell properties to private players.
While ONGC has been ducking under socio-political bouncers, Duliajan (eastern Assam) headquartered Oil India Limited (OIL) has shown interest in acquiring its Assam Asset establishments. OIL has consistently been producing 3.5 MMPTA of crude in areas beyond ONGC’s acquisition.
On Tuesday, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi welcomed OIL’s bid, but said he preferred a consortium comprising ONGC, OIL and the State-run Assam Hydrocarbon Company Ltd (AHCL).
“I’ll be raising the matter with the Prime Minister. I am aware that the big guns of the petroleum industry would not like to have us on board but we want a conglomerate where we will have a substantial stake,” he said.
OIL is keen on becoming a Navaratna company with annual crude production of at least 6 MMTPA in the Northeast (after acquiring ONGC’s assets) and Rajasthan. But officials are not enthusiastic about business collaboration with the Assam government.
The Assam government had floated AHCL three years ago, and it has three oilfields in the marginal area of Geleki in eastern Assam. It also has 17 per cent stake in the 3.2 MMTPA Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL), where both Hindustan Petroleum Corporation limited (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) have majority stakes.
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