ONGC acquires 10 pc stake in UAE's oil offshore concession

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces witnessed the signing of the historic agreement.

India and the UAE today signed a concessional agreement awarding a consortium of Indian oil companies, led by the ONGC, a 10 per cent stake in Abu Dhabi's offshore oil concession, the first such deal for the Indian oil and gas companies in the Gulf nation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces witnessed the signing of the historic agreement.

The MoU between Indian Consortium (OVL, BPRL & IOCL) and state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) was signed for acquisition of 10 per cent participating interest in the offshore Lower Zakum Concession.

The concession will be for 40 years from 2018 to 2057. Sixty per cent of the participating interest will be retained by ADNOC and remaining 30 per cent will be awarded to other international oil companies.

This is the first Indian investment in upstream oil sector of the UAE, transforming the traditional buyer-seller relationship to a long-term investor relationship.

Lower Zakum is one of three new separate concession areas that make up the former ADMA offshore concession, namely Lower Zakum, Umm Shaif and Nasr and Sateh Al Razboot (SARB) and Umm Lulu.

Speaking at the signing of the agreement, Prime Minister Modi said, "The offshore concession in favour of the Indian consortium has taken our bilateral engagement in the oil and gas sector to a new level, which befits the comprehensive strategic partnership between our two countries."

"I am happy to note that we have progressed from a buyer-seller relationship to an era of mutual investments in the oil and gas sector," he said.