Deora ropes in Vietnam to back ONGC’s BP bid
July 22: Oil and Natural Gas Corp and PetroVietnam are considering a joint bid for BP’s stake in an offshore Vietnam gas field, the oil minister, Mr Murli Deora, said on Thursday. ONGC has a 45 per cent share in Block 6.1 in the Nam Con Son basin, off Vietnam’s southeast coast, which is operated by BP with a 35 per cent stake, according to ONGC’s website. The rest is owned by PetroVietnam.
“I have met the Vietnam Prime Minister, and he has in principle agreed to our proposal. Now we have to negotiate with BP,” Mr Deora said. On Wednesday, ONGC head, Mr R.S. Sharma, said the company was interested in buying BP’s stake in the project. A BP spokesman said the company was “exploring divestment options” for its interest in the Nam Con Son gas project, which the London-based firm says is one of Vietnam’s largest foreign investment projects.
The interest, which comprises stakes in the Lan Tay and Lan Do gas fields, the Nam Con Son pipeline and the Phu My power generation project, is worth $966 million, analysts at UBS said in a research note on Monday.
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