New Delhi: Maharatna Oil PSU, Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) has inked gas sale agreements with GAIL India Ltd and Assam Gas Company Ltd (AGCL) to monetise its upcoming field at Khubal in North Tripura district, an official said on Saturday.

Under the agreement, the GAIL and AGCL will receive 50,000 standard cubic metre of gas each from Khubal Gas Gathering Station (GGS), he said.

Once it starts production, Khubal will be the tenth producing field of ONGC in Tripura. Khubal GGS will have a capacity to process 0.44 MMSCMD (4,40,000 standard cubic meters) of gas for which the process of construction has already been started, he added.

"It marks a momentous occasion not just for ONGC, GAIL and AGCL but for the people of Northeast as well, as it means more gas will find its way into industries and people's homes, positively impacting living standards," asset manager of ONGC Tripura Tarun Malik said.

"The GSA for gas produced from wells of Khubal means more than just another step in the relationship between ONGC and GAIL. It means the increasing integration of the region with the rest of the country," said R Choudhury, CGM-zonal head of GAIL.

GSA is an important milestone in the lifecycle of any gas business, signifying commerciality for producers like ONGC, while ensuring the product reaches the end consumers through marketing and transportation intermediaries such as GAIL and AGCL.

The Khubal gas field is expected to start production in 2024 in line with the commissioning of the Indra Danush Gas Grid Line (IGGL) pipeline, a critical and massive infrastructure project for the Northeast region's gas sector, officials said.

(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Google News. Click here to follow. Also, join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram. You may also follow us on Twitter here and stay updated.)