Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma requested PM Modi to consider transferring all assets of state owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation(ONGC) to Oil India Limited which has been situated in the northern state for several decades in the region.
Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and PM Modi
Assam: In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma requested him to consider transferring all assets of state owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation(ONGC) to Oil India Limited which has been situated in the northern state for several decades in the region. He wrote the letter on June 5 and a copy of the letter was made available on June 23.
This has come amid the petroleum ministry’s directives to ONGC to sell a stake in producing oil field and removed drilling and other services into a separate firm to raise production.
Assam and Assam Arakan Basin is a super basin of India with estimated hydrocarbon resources of 7634 MMTOE. It holds 5588 MMTOE of Ye To find (YTF) resource potential which is next to the KG basin.
Sarma emphasised in his letter on June 5 that both ONGC and OIL are national companies. They’re also the acreages to ONGC, which were awarded under the nomination regime.
There should be no issues in the transfer of assets by transferring the nomination from ONGC to OIL. He also urged PM Modi that Government may kindly consider the transfer of all the acreages of ONGC in the North-Eastern region to OIL.
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The northeast region is the supplier of OIL that comes from the focus of oil on exploration and production in this region is undivided, Sarma adds in the letter.
From several decades Assam has been operating OIL. The interaction of Oil India with the local populace is surmountable. It has been felt that the operations in the entire Non-Eastern region may be carried out by one major operator, preferably OIL.
He further pointed out that Oil is a company that has its roots embedded in the North-Eastern region and therefore understands the nuances of the region.
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The maximum percentage of employment comes from the region that is 90 per cent. Therefore, it will allow the company to focus on the operations and at the same time, they’ll be sensitive to the aspirations of local people.
Highlighting the improvement of OIL’s net worth after taking over by Numaligarh Refinery Limited, Assam CM wrote that it had led to the vertical integration. Not just that with further expansion also, in operation and production, OIL can become the only Maharatna Company of our region and would truly reflect the Act East policy.
He further noted that if OIl has been handed over to the ONGC assets, it can also endeavour to create hydrocarbon sector manufacturing and services hub in Assam which can help, in the long run, to provide services to the far eastern countries.
