IOC seeks govt help for Iran share
The Economic Times (India) 22 Jan 2010, 0609 hrs IST, Rajeev Jayaswal &
Subhash Narayan, ET Bureau
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/energy/oil-gas/IOC-seeks-govt-help-for-Iran-share/articleshow/5486584.cms

NEW DELHI: State-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the country’s largest
fuel retailer in terms of volumes, has sought the government’s
intervention to participate in $12.5billion Iranian projects as a third
partner in the ONGC-Hinduja group consortium . Iran has offered a 40%
interest to ONGC and the Hindujas for developing the $7.9-billion South Pars
phase-12 field and a 20% stake in the $4.5-billion liquefied natural gas
(LNG) terminal project with a commitment to supply minimum 6 mt gas annually
to India. The South Pars-12 field has over 35 trillion cubic feet of proven
reserves , about two-and-a-half times the reserves of RIL’s KG-D 6 block.

IOC director (planning & business development ) BM Bansal confirmed the
development . “The project is important for us as we want LNG from Iran for
our Ennore terminal ,” he told ET. IOC is planning to set up a
2.5-million-tonne LNG terminal at Ennore near Chennai with Petronet LNG. The
two partners have been making efforts to source LNG from Iran.

In a letter to the oil ministry, IOC chairman Sarthak Behuria said, “... IOC
has been pursuing the integrated LNG project with Iranian authorities for a
number of years and this point has been appearing in the agenda in all joint
working group (between Indian and Iranian officials)... However, it appears
that ONGC and the Hindujas have prevailed upon NIOC authorities to pursue
this project in their favour.”

“MoPNG (ministry of oil & natural gas) is requested to intervene in the
matter immediately for induction of IndianOil in the above projects (South
Pars-12 and LNG terminal ) in Iran,” he said in the letter. Mr Behuria could
not be contacted as he was out of station.

As per a senior official in ONGC, its foreign arm OVL may pick up 20% or
more in the South Pars-12 field development project and 10% or more in the
LNG terminal depending on its negotiations with the Hindujas . Instead of a
joint venture with the Hindujas, OVL will form a consortium, he said
requesting anonymity.

OVL, Hinduja group and Petronet LNG have already entered into two “broad
agreements” with Iranian authorities for participation in development of the
gas fields and LNG projects in Iran on December 1, 2009, an ONGC official,
who didn’t wish to be named, said. The deal was signed during the recent
visit of Iran’s deputy oil minister and managing director of National
Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), Seifollah Jashnsaz. A final agreement between
the Indian entities and Iranian companies is expected to be signed by the
end of March 2010.