ONGC changes rules for rig deals

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Kolkata, May 14 : ONGC Ltd, the oil and natural gas exploration and production major, has decided to change its bid-evaluation criteria for charter-hire of offshore and onshore rigs, an area in which it expects to spend up to Rs 6829 crore by 2010.

UN Bose, director of technology & field services, told FE that ONGC would, for the first time, charter hire 17 onshore rigs of different types for Rs 2,468 crore. The tender committee has decided to relax some norms and tighten others for its first-ever charter-hire of onshore rigs.

ONGC plans to spend Rs 16,075 crore for purchase, charter-hire and upgradation of rigs in the next five years.

While ONGC plans to purchase 10 onshore rigs for Rs 600 crore over the next two-three years, the charter hire of 17 onshore rigs for Rs 2,468 crore will be completed within the next three years. For upgrading the existing land rigs, ONGC has decided to spend Rs 1,246 crore between 2008 and 2012.

For charter hire of 16-17 offshore rigs by 2008, ONGC has decided spend Rs 4,361 crore and for purchase of 4 jack up rigs for shallow water exploration, ONGC has decided to spend Rs 4,400 crore by 2012.

ONGC has earmarked Rs 3,000 crore to purchase a floater for the first time for deep-water exploration and expects to commission it by 2012.

Bose said the tenders for purchase and the charter hire have already been floated and they are at different stages of processing.

For charter hire, the tender committee has made changes in the bid evaluation norms, which include changes in matters relating to experience of bidders, third-party inspection agency, mobilisation period, mobilisation fee and payment of excise duty. There are changes being incorporated in the model-drilling contract too, tender committee officials said.

ONGC has decided to take over the contractors' liability of service tax as well as limit contractor's liability for pollution and blow out up to Rs 50 lakh.

Mobilisation period of rigs or the number days between getting the rigs and put them to work have been made uniform to 180 days with lumpsum mobilisation fee for getting rigs within India fixed at $0.3 million and $1.5 million for rigs mobilised from outside India.