(ET)
The government is planning to finish auction by March and award blocks by June in the first round of oilfield auctions, slated to be launched on January 16 under the new hydrocarbon exploration licensing policy.
The government had received 57 expressions of interest (EoI) by mid-November 2017 when the window for the first round of applications closed. The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), the technical arm of oil ministry which is overseeing the bidding process, bidding process, is now on course to launch auction and award blocks.
“We don’t have the luxury of time. Our target is to get winners to begin exploration as soon as possible,” said an official, who did not wish to be named. According to the new policy, anybody can access hydrocarbon data for a fee, and submit EoI for a block. The policy gives companies the freedom to carve a block of their choice based on available data. and if found fit by DGH, leads to an auction where everyone can put in their bid for that specific block. However, the company submitting original interest gets bonus marks during evaluation of bids.
