Newsco readies Assam mobilisation for Oil India
Drilling contractor Newsco is preparing to mobilise to Assam for Oil India as India's junior state-owned explorer focuses on state-of-the art directional drilling to boost production from its declining north-east fields.
Newsco bid lowest on September 23 quoting Rs3,892,443 ($58,300) for an Oil India contract to drill two directional wells in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, beating Schlumberger, Halliburton, Jindal Drilling and Almansoori Petroleum Services. "We are expecting the LoA from Oil India in the next 15 or 20 days sometime in November," confirms a Newsco source.
"Oil India will then tell us when and where to mobilise our (3) 'kits' to location." Newsco expects Oil India to drill the wells at the Barekuri and Baghjan fields in north-eastern Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. However, it might instead be asked to mobilise to the nearby Makum (site of India's first oil discovery in 1867) and Hapjan fields in the Tinsukia district of Assam where Oil India is already drilling.
Oil India is offering Newsco a one-year contract until October 2017 with the likelihood of an optional one-year extension. Oil India wants to drill the two wells to 3000 metres TVD followed by a 2000 metres horizontal section targeting the Makum and North-Hapjan Barail geological formations in the Upper-Assam basin.
