The UK-based Cairn Energy is identifying buyers for its Gauri gas from Block CB/OS-2 offshore Gujarat following a formal approval from the government for commercialisation of the gas field.
"We have invited expression of interest from prospective buyers," Cairn Energy chairman Phil Tracy said.
"We will be looking at end consumers, other energy users or individual users through competitive tendering," he said.
"A development plan for the gas field has been submitted for review to the ministry of petroleum and natural gas a few months ago," Tracy said, adding, "We are awaiting an approval."
"Since the gas field is close to the other fields, the bulk of the investment in the block has already been made. We intend to run the gas through the existing pipeline. But we will need to make a few more investments for constructing inter-field pipelines," Tracy said.
"The tenders we receive will give us a sufficient idea of the demand for gas and the commitment of buyers," he said.
Company officials say further drilling is also expected since oil has been discovered beneath the Gauri field. Development wells will be deepened to appraise the oil reservoirs, a company official said.
Cairn Energy has made 10 hyrdrocarbon discoveries in India thus far. Of these, Gauri, Ambe, Parvati and Lakshmi were made offshore in the shallow water depths of Gujarat Block CB/OS-2 and Saraswati was made onshore in Rajasthan Block RJ-ON-90/1.
The other five discoveries were all made in deep water offshore Andhra Pradesh in the Krishna-Godavari Basin Block KG-DWN-98/2.
The company has also completed the acquisition of remaining 50 per cent interest in Block RJ-ON-90/1 onshore Rajasthan.
Besides, Cairn has secured a three-year extension to the exploration term of the block, on which there have been two previous oil discoveries.
