ONGC to award 3-platform job by September
ONGC is aiming to award an estimated Rs1400cr ($217m) contract to set up three wellhead platforms off Mumbai by September 17 (2017).
This should hopefully enable it to begin oil and gas production as planned from 2018-19. Surprise newcomers CUEL from Thailand and Dyna-Mac Holdings from Singapore were among seven companies at a June 16 pre-bid in Mumbai for the job at the (non-producing) B-147 and BSE-11 marginal fields and NBP-20 - part of the larger NBP block pumping out 30,000 b/d from 34 producers and two water injectors.
Also present were Abu Dhabi-based NPCC, SapuraKencana from Malaysia plus L&T, AFCONS and BHEL from India. On sale since May 26, tender documents are available until the July 26 bid deadline.
Crucially, Indian companies will benefit from a 10% price preference over foreign companies to reflect the government's Make in India Policy, announced on April 25. Worse news for overseas contractors is a demand that local content, or Indian goods and services, must constitute at least 20% of well and process platform projects this fiscal, rising to 30% next fiscal and 35% thereafter.
Despite this, ONGC expects more companies to show interest in this tender before the July 26 bid deadline. Unsuitable for independent development, ONGC has clubbed marginal fields B-147 and BSE-11 with the larger NBP-20 field.
Included in this project is modification of nine existing platforms elsewhere and a modest upgrade of the existing established B-193 offshore process platform.