ONGC Floats Tender For Global Expertise To Increase Mumbai Field Output

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation is seeking help from an internationally-proven technical service provider to raise oil and gas production from its flagship but old and maturing Mumbai field in the Arabian Sea. The firm has floated an international tender to identify the service provider who will help raise production from the field, ONGC said in a post on X.

"The giant multi-layered Mumbai High field, which commenced production 48 years ago in 1976, is currently in its mature stage of production and ONGC has implemented a number of schemes in this field to improve production," it said.

"As a custodian and operator of Mumbai High field, ONGC is keen to collaborate with a global technical service provider. The service provider would be contracted for 10 years, extendable by another five years.' Mumbai High field lies 160 kilometres off the coast of Mumbai and produces about 38% of India's oil production.

While it hit a peak output of 4,00,000 barrels per day in 1989, the field is producing 134,000 bpd and about 10 million standard cubic metres per day of gas.

The field is estimated to hold a balance reserve of 80 million tonnes (610 million barrels) of oil and over 40 billion cubic metres of gas.

The service provider would give technical solutions for raising the output. It will be paid a fixed fee and a biddable share from the revenue earned from incremental production over an agreed baseline.

"Mumbai High is one of the prime assets of ONGC and significant upside is still to be unlocked here if ONGC applies best-in-class reservoir management technologies and adopts globally-best operational and management practices," the firm said, adding that the bids are due in mid-September.

The identified service provider would carry out a comprehensive review of field performance and identify improvements in wells, reservoirs including water injection, and facilities management.

It would suggest and help implement suitable technological interventions to improve production.

Integrated reservoir/FEED studies and development of detailed work plans for field development would also be within the scope of work, it said.

"All international oil and gas majors, having annual revenue above $75 billion are invited to participate in this ICB," the firm said.