Hardeep Puri hails ONGC's new KG-D5 well as key to energy self-reliance

ONGC's new KG-D5 well: State-owned oil and gas major ONGC added a new feather to its cap as it opened another well in its deep-sea project within the Krishna Godavari KG basin.

This step is going to further increase India's energy production by increasing the output of crude oil and natural gas.

The well, which has just been commissioned, is the fifth oil-producing well in Cluster-2, which is part of the KG-DWN-98/2 or KG-D5 block, an area that ONGC is focusing on to start production first. Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri termed this a "major milestone" in India's pursuit of self-sufficiency in energy.

He took to Twitter and celebrated this milestone.  

A major milestone achieved in oil & gas production by @ONGC_ in India's ambitious journey towards energy self-sufficiency under the dynamic leadership of PM @narendramodi Ji.

Gas begins to flow through a newly laid 20 inches sub-sea pipeline from offshore wells/ Floating… pic.twitter.com/mPqlATALx9

— Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri)

 "A major milestone achieved in oil & gas production by @ONGC_ in India's ambitious journey towards energy self-sufficiency under the dynamic leadership of PM @narendramodi Ji.

Gas begins to flow through a newly laid 20 inches sub-sea pipeline from offshore wells/ Floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) in Krishna Godavari deep water block to onshore terminal.

The energy Maharatna has also opened fifth oil well in the Block KG-DWN-98/2 Cluster-2 asset. After completion of all the well openings over a period of time, the peak production is expected to be 45,000 BOPD and 10 MMSCMD of Gas. 

Oil production commenced from the same asset in January 2024, with 4 of 13 wells already flowing. Gas production is also advancing, with 3 of 7 wells online and 6 water injection wells enhancing output. All wells are expected to be opened by March 25."

The KG-D5 block is located 35 km off the coast of Andhra Pradesh, adjacent to Reliance Industries' KG-D6 block. It sprawls over an area spread across water depths of 300-3,200 metres. There are three clusters in the block, and Cluster-2 is under production.

Cluster-2 oil production was initially planned to commence by November 2021 but got delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The production finally began in January 2024. 

Notably, the targets of this block are peak production at 45,000 barrels of oil per day and more than 10 million standard cubic meters per day of gas. 

ONGC has drilled 26 wells in the KG-D5 block, comprising 13 oil producers and 7 gas producers. All oil wells and most of the gas wells will come on stream by March 2025.

The other clusters of the block are still in different stages of development, with a huge future potential, especially Cluster-3, containing one of the world's deepest hydrocarbon discoveries.