Seventeen new companies, including Petronas of Malaysia, Petrobras of Brazil, ENI of Italy, public sector National Thermal Power Corporation and Adani Exports, are among the 48 bidders for 20 oil and gas blocks offered under the new exploration and licensing policy.
The bidding for the fifth round closed on Tuesday. The number of Indian companies bidding for the first time under NELP has gone up to 11.
NTPC, which has seven gas-based power plants, is bidding for a block in Assam Arakkan and another in the Cauvery basin along with Geopetro International of France. The two companies, along with Canoro Resources of Canada, have put in a bid for onland block CB-ONN-2003/1 in the Cambay basin.
Announcing the receipt of 69 bids at a press conference, Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said the award of the blocks would be finalised by July 31.
Reliance Industries has put in 10 bids, including proposals for two Kerala-Konkan deepwater blocks where it is the only bidder. It has also put in one bid each with British company Hardy and Niko Resources of Canada.
Public sector Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, which is the dominant player in India's upstream sector, has bid for six blocks alone, while for two it has tied up with Cairn Energy and for one with Cairn Energy and ENIS of Italy.
Of the 48 companies that have shown interest, 27 are foreign and 21 Indian with eight of them public sector undertakings and 13 from the private sector.
The Krishna-Godvari deepwater block off the eastern coast of the country attracted a maximum of nine bids including the first timer Petronas which has come along with BG Exploration and Production India.
The Cambay on-shore block, CB-ONN-2003/1 block also attracted nine bids including those from ONGC, Reliance, Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation and Indian Oil Corporation.
The bids would be evaluated on the basis of works programme and the share of profit petroleum or gas offered to the government besides the net worth of the bidding consortium.
The Krishna-Godvari deepwater block off the eastern coast of the country attracted a maximum of nine bids including the first timer Petronas which has come along with BG Exploration and Production India.
The Cambay on-shore block, CB-ONN-2003/1 block also attracted nine bids including those from ONGC, Reliance, Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation and Indian Oil Corporation.
