The government of Arunachal Pradesh has granted licence to PSU Oil India (OIL) for exploration of petroleum resources in seven new blocks in the state. The state government has also given its permission to the company for exploration in the extended area of the Jairampur block in Changlang district.
The blocks awarded to the company are spread across Changlang, Tirap, Lohit, East and West Siang and Lower Dibang Valley districts. Exploration in each block will be conducted in two phases.
The total exploration period is for eight years and each phase is of about three years with a provision for additional one year extension.
In the long run, discoveries from these blocks will help enhancing domestic production of petroleum and reducing imports. In order to accelerate exploration activities in the country, the Central government had offered 55 blocks spread across offshore and onshore areas under the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) and Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP).
In the bidding process, OIL bagged nine blocks and seven of them falls in Arunachal Pradesh. In addition, the Central government also awarded the Jairampur extension block, measuring an area of 23.25 sq km in Changlang district to the company on a nomination basis.
Apart from this, the detail project report (DPR) for the proposed pipeline from Kumchai (Kharsang) in Changlang district to Duliajan in Assam for transportation of natural gas has been submitted to the state government.
