Stop supply of gas to non-priority users, RIL told

 Petroleum Secretary Oil Secretary S Sundareshan told reporters that this instruction has been issued by the petroleum ministry in the wake of fall in production in KG-d6 fields.

RIL, apart from supplying gas to priority sectors — power and fertilizers — has also been supplying it to private users like Essar Steel as well as its own petrochemical complex and refineries located at Jamnagar in Gujarat.

Sundareshan said at the commissioning of KG-D6 gas fields the government had initially allocated supply of gas only to fertiliser, power, LPG extraction units and city gas distribution firms.

When output went up, additional users in steel, refineries and petrochemical sector were added, he said.

“Now with fall in the production of gas falling it is natural for the government to go back to allocation made to the priority sector,” he said.

The oil regulator Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) has already sent a fact finding mission to KG-D6 fields to ascertain reasons for the decline in production.
The three-member fact finding team will review well-wise production and reservoir performance of KG-D6 fields.

RIL on its part has explained that output has dipped after touching 61.5 msmcmd achieved in March last year due to falling pressure at wells and that drilling more wells will not solve the problem as it will tap the same resource.

Based on the findings of the DGH team the Petroleum Ministry will review reasons for the fall in production at Reliance's KG-D6 fields.

“A meeting will be held next week. The representative of contractor (in this case RIL) will be asked to explain fall in production.”

Asked if the government is contemplating levying any penalty on RIL for not sticking to its drilling commitment in KG-D6 oil fields, Sundareshan said “it is difficult at this juncture to comment on why production has fallen. It is also too premature to talk of any action,” he said.