State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India (OIL) may be roped in by the Union government to explore shale gas in onland blocks held by them under nomination, giving them an edge over rivals who can start the hunt only after auction of blocks, whose date has not been announced yet. Shale gas is non-conventional natural gas found in non-porous rocks and requires fracking technology for its extraction, similar to the extraction of gas between coal seams in India.
The note for cabinet approval in this is likely to be taken up early next month. As many as 176 of the 356 blocks held under nomination may contain shale gas, according to the director-general of hydrocarbons.
The Union government plans to tap the unconventional fuel to reduce the country’s energy shortfall and has identified six basins — Cambay, Assam-Arakan, Gondwana, KG onshore, Cauvery onshore and Indo Gangetic basins.
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