Aakash set to receive ONGC rig LoA
Aakash Exploration is set to win a tender to hire a single 50-tonne workover rig for ONGC's 821-sq km Cambay asset.
On August 24 (2022), ONGC opened technical bids for the tender floated on August 3 (2022) from Ahmedabad-based rivals GTC Oilfield and Aakash Exploration. "After technical evaluation, GTC failed to qualify," reports an ONGC source.
"So this month (September), ONGC only opened Aakash's financial bid." We hear Aakash quoted Rs88.73cr ($1.1m) for the one-year contract.
"ONGC is evaluating Aakash's financial bid," adds our source. Once it receives the LoA, ONGC wants Aakash to mobilise within 180 days.
ONGC will use the workover rig to install artificial lift equipment, clean wellbores and pack gravel. Other duties include sand screening, well stimulation or abandonment, zone transfers, water shut-off, gas shut-off, water injection profile modifications and re-completion, retrieval of gravel pack assemblies, fishing operations, multi-layer testing and casing repair in vertical, deviated, horizontal, multilateral, ERD (extended reach drilling) and USRD (ultra short radius drilling) wells.
Aakash operates a fleet of 14 workover rigs, according to its website. But it's unclear which rig it will mobilise for the ONGC contract.
ONGC's Cambay asset presently has four workover rigs on site: three company-owned and one hired. Created in 2016, ONGC's Cambay asset produced around 4100 b/d and 29,300 cm/d gas from 11 fields in July 2021.
In a separate development, ONGC has extended the bid deadline for its tender to hire one 250-tonne production testing rig for three years at its Rajahmundry asset from September 14 to September 28 (2022).