New Delhi: State-run ONGC have won the three-match series international to mediate award In total Rs 1,000 crore Cost Sharing More than a decade after global players exited offshore exploration blocks in the Mahanadi, Krishna-Godavari and Cauvery basins, Brazil’s Petrobras, Italy’s ENI and Norway’s Rocksource – now known as Pure E&P – There has been a dispute with.
The arbitration was initiated between 2014 and 2016 through lawyer KR Sashiparabhu. The proceedings against Petrobras and ENI were in London, while for Rocksource/Pure E&P it was Delhi – the last of three arbitrations due in December. ONGC has filed a caveat petition in the Delhi High Court to protect the award.
All the arbitral awards were unanimous, underscoring a vote of confidence in the quality of ONGC’s performance, which was questioned by at least one of the three foreign companies seeking to avoid sharing costs.
The disputes relate to blocks MN-DWN-98/3 off the Odisha coast, KG-DWN-98/2 off the Andhra coast – production of which recently began – and CY-DWN-2001/1 off the Tamil Nadu coast. ONGC had signed agreements with foreign companies for these blocks between 2002 and 2011, when it was entering the frontier field of deepwater exploration and was looking for technology and expertise.
Under the sovereign contract of the blocks, ONGC was to drill three exploration wells in each block under the minimum work programme. The costs were to be shared by the partners. However, all nine wells dug turned out to be dry. In between, foreign partners announced their exit and refused to share the cost under various pretexts, including finding fault in ONGC’s performance.
In to mediate Against Petrobras, ONGC was awarded $50 million with interest against a claim of $60 million. The award in ENI’s case was $20 million with interest against a claim of $33 million and in Pure’s case, the arbitrator awarded the entire amount of $20 million to ONGC – a total of over Rs 1,000 crore.
The arbitration was initiated between 2014 and 2016 through lawyer KR Sashiparabhu. The proceedings against Petrobras and ENI were in London, while for Rocksource/Pure E&P it was Delhi – the last of three arbitrations due in December. ONGC has filed a caveat petition in the Delhi High Court to protect the award.
All the arbitral awards were unanimous, underscoring a vote of confidence in the quality of ONGC’s performance, which was questioned by at least one of the three foreign companies seeking to avoid sharing costs.
The disputes relate to blocks MN-DWN-98/3 off the Odisha coast, KG-DWN-98/2 off the Andhra coast – production of which recently began – and CY-DWN-2001/1 off the Tamil Nadu coast. ONGC had signed agreements with foreign companies for these blocks between 2002 and 2011, when it was entering the frontier field of deepwater exploration and was looking for technology and expertise.
Under the sovereign contract of the blocks, ONGC was to drill three exploration wells in each block under the minimum work programme. The costs were to be shared by the partners. However, all nine wells dug turned out to be dry. In between, foreign partners announced their exit and refused to share the cost under various pretexts, including finding fault in ONGC’s performance.
In to mediate Against Petrobras, ONGC was awarded $50 million with interest against a claim of $60 million. The award in ENI’s case was $20 million with interest against a claim of $33 million and in Pure’s case, the arbitrator awarded the entire amount of $20 million to ONGC – a total of over Rs 1,000 crore.
