Reuters: Mergers News: UPDATE 1-ConocoPhillips, India's ONGC in pact for shale gas exploration

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UPDATE 1-ConocoPhillips, India's ONGC in pact for shale gas exploration Mar 30th 2012, 14:45 Fri Mar 30, 2012 10:45am EDT * ONGC, ConocoPhillips may jointly bid for overseas shale gas assets * India seen launching first shale gas licensing round by end-2013 MUMBAI, March 30 (Reuters) - India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp and U.S. oil company ConocoPhillips signed a pact on Friday to explore and develop shale gas assets and look for opportunities in deepwater exploration. The agreement is for sharing technical expertise on shale gas explorations, but ONGC and ConocoPhillips could also jointly bid for shale gas assets overseas, the leading Indian oil and gas producer's chairman Sudhir Vasudeva told reporters. India may launch the first shale gas licensing round by the end of next year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said last week, after the government pushed back plans to unveil a policy on exploration of unconventional gas resources trapped in rocks. "India has a lot of potential in shale gas. We want to exploit that with the technical expertise of ConocoPhillips," ONGC's Vasudeva said, adding the two companies will also explore opportunities in the U.S. and other countries. ONGC does not see any financial benefit from the agreement in the near future, he said. A lack of a policy framework and resource estimates have led to Indian companies turning their focus to shale gas assets overseas. Another Indian oil and gas producer, Oil India Ltd is in talks with U.S.-based companies, including ConocoPhillips, to buy stake in shale gas assets in the U.S, the Indian state-run company's finance chief said in January. Global energy majors have also been pushing to grab a slice of India's oil and gas reserves and gain exposure to surging demand in Asia's third-largest economy. BP paid $7.2 billion last year to acquire 30 percent stake in 23 oil and gas blocks owned by India's Reliance Industries. UK-listed miner Vedanta Resources has also bought a controlling stake in explorer Cairn India in a deal valued around $6 billion. India, the world's fourth-largest oil importer, meets about 80 percent of its crude needs through overseas purchases. It is scouting for oil and gas assets abroad to meet demand in a fast-growing economy, and to feed its expanding refining capacity. ONGC, which has been investing heavily to maintain output from its old fields, has said it aims to raise its crude oil production by 15 percent to 28 million tonnes, or 560,000 barrels per day (bpd), by March 2014. Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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