India’s fourth largest oil and gas producer, Cairn India, on Monday said it has struck oil at a well in the Krishna Godavari basin, off the Andhra Pradesh coast.
“A flow of 75 barrels per day of oil and 0.27 million cubic feet per day of gas was achieved during drill stem tests,” the company said in a regulatory statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
“The well and test results are being evaluated to assess the commercial potential of the discovery and to determine the future appraisal programme,” it added.
Cairn India, the operator, has a 49 per cent stake in the block, while State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) holds the remaining 51 per cent participating interest.
Cairn India had last week announced selling a 51-60 per cent stake to London-based industrialist Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Group on Monday in a $8.5-$9.6 billion.
The deal, however, may run into trouble following the minority stakeholder ONGC and the government’s view that the State-owned oil explorer should be given the first right of refusal over Cairn India’s shares.
