No interest in ONGC office move
ONGC plans to move out of its Avani Bhavan office in the lush green Chandkheda area of Ahmedabad to a new location nearby.
But where exactly has yet to be confirmed, and no contractor seems interested in helping identify a location. ONGC wants bids by May 2 (2024) in a tender to hire a project consultant to set up its new office after inviting offers on March 23 (2024).
However, nobody showed up at its pre-bid on April 4 (2024). "Nobody even had registered on the ONGC portal by then," says a source.
ONGC proposes setting up an office that can accommodate 750 employees, preferably with a 44,100-sq metre built-up area. ONGC is considering two options.
Under the first option, it will build six floors plus the ground floor. There will be two basement floors for parking.
Under the second option, it will build the ground floor plus one more floor for parking and seven floors for employees to sit at their desks. Cabins will be included for 60 employees of CGM, GM and ED rank.
ONGC plans open-plan cubicles for lower and middle-ranked officials, with three separate styles. "ONGC's Chandkheda office is very old," says a source, "and even withstood the 2001 Gujarat earthquake; if the renovation cost is higher than setting up a brand-new office, then definitely a new office is preferable."
He claims the Avani Bhavan building has structural problems. One source tells us that the new office will likely be just 2-3-km away from the Avani Bhawan office.
"ONGC bought a plot near the current office about ten years ago," he says. "Maybe it will construct the new office there."