Vedanta has received a nod from the environment ministry for the expansion of its oil and gas operation in Rajasthan that is going to cost Rs 12,000 crore
New Delhi: Vedanta has received a nod from the environment ministry for the expansion of its oil and gas operation in Rajasthan that is going to cost the mining mogul an investment of Rs 12,000 crore, an official circular said. The expansion is being planned to push the onshore oil and gas production from the existing 3,00,000 BOPD (barrels oil per day) to 4,00,000 BOPD and 165 mmscfd (million standard cubic feed per day) to 750 mmscfd from the 'RJ-ON-90/1' block located in Rajasthan's Barmer and Jalore districts.
The circular showed that Vedanta has been granted an environment clearance (EC) certificate. The EC certificate is granted to businesses only after they fulfil certain conditions. The final clearance was given by the environment ministry after taking into account the recommendations of an in-house expert committee.
Vedanta aims to undertake the expansion in a phased manner and complete it in seven years. The project involves oil augmentation in order to push oil output to 4,00,000 BOPD and 250 MMSCFD of associated gas from the oil field and natural gas augmentation to produce up to 500 mmscfd.
The oil and gas block covers a total area of 3,111 sq km. Out of this, the project currently covers about 1,501.7 hectare in Barmer and Jalore districts. Vedanta plans to use an additional 150 hectare of land in Barmer district for the proposed expansion, the company said.