RIL knew of link to ONGC: Niko

RIL knew way back in 2003 that its Dhirubhai gas fields in Bay of Bengal block KG-D6 will drain out natural gas from adjacent block of ONGC, regulatory filings by its partner Niko Resources indicate.

Canada’s Niko had on April 6, 2004 filed with Toronto Stock Exchange an “Appraisal Report as of March 31, 2003 on Block KG-DWN-98/3 (KG-D6)” natural gas reserves it had commissioned from DeGo-lyer and MacNaughton (D&M). In the report, D&M stated: “Developm-ent of the KG-DWN-98/3 block will be capable of depleting the OFIP (Original Gas In-Place) on the KG-OS-IG block.”

KG-OS-IG block lies adjacent to KG-D6 and belongs to state-owned ONGC which had taken RIL to the Delhi High Court in May 2014 alleging that its gas had been produced by the private firm.

Under court directions, RIL and ONGC appointed D&M to study if the gas fields in their blocks are inter-connected. The consultant in its report submitted in December 2015 stated that as much as 11.122 billion cubic metres of ONGC gas has migrated to Dhirubhai-1 and 3 (D1 & D3) field located in the KG-DWN-98/3 (KG-D6) block of RIL.

The government thereafter appointed a one-man committee under AP Shah to decide on compensation to be paid to ONGC. The panel is to submit its report by next month end.

Sources said while ONGC in its submissions to the Shah panel has pointed to the Niko filing to buttress its case, RIL claimed comments “suggest that there was a possibility of connectivity, but only that and is not firm evidence of it.”