Reliance Industries may see natural gas output from its eastern offshore KG-D6 fields drop further this fiscal as all oil and gas fields see natural decline.

Mr SK Srivastava Director General of Oil regulator Directorate General of Hydrocarbons told reporters "They [RIL] are currently producing between 38 and 39 million standard cubic metres per day. This may drop further this year as all the oil and gas fields witness natural decline.”

RIL has seen KG-D6 output fall from 61.5 mmscmd achieved in March 2010 to less than 39 mmscmd, instead of raising it to about 70 mmscmd target for this fiscal and 80 mmsmcd by April.

Mr Srivastava said that "The operator [RIL] has now got an experienced partner [BP]. They are doing studies in tandem. By the end of the year, the will come up with solutions to arrest the fall in production.”

RIL, which has so far drilled and completed only 18 out of the 22 planned wells by April, 2011 and 31 by April 2012, blames the fall in output to reservoir not behaving in the previously predicted fashion, fall in pressure in wells and water and sand ingress. It wants to do more studies before drilling more wells.

Five of the 18 wells on Dhirubhai 1 and 3 gas fields in KG-DWN-98/3 or KG-D6 block, have ceased due to high water and sand ingress. Besides, one out of the six wells on the MA oil field in the same block has also closed due to the same issues.

Mr Srivastava said RIL is to submit workover for reviving the six sick wells.

(Sourced from PTI)