Scepticism grows at ONGC over GSPC deal
ONGC chairman DK Sarraf is on a charm offensive to calm the nerves of employees worrying about the company's controversial acquisition last month (December 2016) of 80% at GSPC-operated KG-OSN-2001/3 which includes the Deen Dayal field.
Sarraf held the first of a series of 'Open Forum' meetings in Ahmedabad on January 13 followed by a similar event in Mumbai on January 14. Oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan is believed to have asked Sarraf to do this.
Members of the ONGC officers union ASTO, led by its central working committee president Sanjay Goel, met Pradhan on January 12 and told him there was "utter and complete confusion in the minds" of ONGC officers "due to the lack of information" on the GSPC deal. Pradhan then responded that he would instruct senior ONGC bosses to share all the details of the deal.
At the Mumbai meeting, several ONGC staffers wanted to know how ONGC will benefit from buying the Deen Dayal field which has missed so many production deadlines. "Sarraf answered all the questions very diplomatically," says a source.