ONGC chairman Kumar's tense visit to Agartala
ONGC chairman Arun Singh and two directors rushed from Delhi to Agartala this month (2024) to manage the fallout of diesel siphoning accusations against an employee.
On June 16 (2024), news reports said two people, including an ONGC employee, had been arrested over the alleged siphoning of 620 litres of diesel from a fuel retail station. That same day, Singh, director production Pankaj Kumar and director technical and field services Om Prakash Singh arrived at the Tripura asset office in the state capital Agartala, looking stressed.
Two senior officers have also been suspended since the visit. But management isn't just concerned about the alleged theft.
Also of concern is the general underperformance of the asset, with production steadily declining, according to a source. On the evening of June 16 (2024), Singh and the directors met asset manager Krishna Kumar, who took charge in January 2024.
Singh refused to speak to the press. "The chairman was so annoyed over the theft and its handling that he did not even accept the flower bouquet presented to him," says a source.
On June 17 (2024), the management team visited the ONGC Tripura Power Company (OTPC) power station at Patalana in Tripura, where talks with local ONGC officials were also "terse." A source says ONGC's management has instructed asset manager Kumar to increase production from 3.6m cm/d to 4m cm/d.
"The chairman has given an ultimatum for production to increase to 5m cm/d by 2025," says a source. Despite no discoveries in 2022-23, production ranged from 4.6m to 5m cm/d.
This mysteriously declined to 3.6m cm/d within a year and a half. "People who were previously in charge damaged the formations just to show increased production, and now many wells are water-loaded," claims an insider.
"Those earlier surface managers who were responsible are now in high places." Besides queries on delayed action in the theft case, asset manager Kumar faced tough questions over how land acquisition challenges prevent the connection of recently established wells.
Well GOAI in the 271.17-sq km Gojalia PML can produce 200,000 cm/d gas for the OTPC power plant, but ONGC is struggling because of local villager protests, we hear. "Only three of the 30 wells drilled since January 2023 in Gojalia are producing," says a source.