Reliance Industries Limited announced the first oil discovery in the onland exploratory block CB ONN 2003/1 awarded under the NELP V round of exploration bidding. RIL holds 100% participating interest in this block which is located at a distance of about 130 kilometers from Ahmedabad in Gujarat in the Cambay basin.

The block covers an area of 635 square kilometer in two parts viz Part A located in the west with an area of 570 square kilometers & Part B located to the east with an area of 65 square kilometers.

3D Seismic data has been acquired over 80% of the block area and 2D Seismic data has been acquired over the entire area. Five wells have been drilled in this block. The fifth well, CB10A-A1, which is the discovery well was drilled to a total depth of 1451 m in Part A of the block with the objective of exploring the play fairway in the Miocene Basal Sand of Babaguru formation. A gross reservoir thickness of about 15 m was encountered and the well flowed at a rate of 500 barrels of oil per day through a 6 mm bean with a flowing tubing head pressure of 360 psi on conventional testing.

This Discovery is expected to open future potential within the block. The Discovery, named Dhirubhai 43 has been notified to Government of India and Directorate General of Hydrocarbons. Commerciality of this Discovery is being ascertained through more data gathering and analysis.

This Discovery supplements RIL’s understanding of the petroleum system in this block in the Cambay basin. Based on interpretation of the acquired 3D seismic data in the Contract Area, several prospects have been identified at different stratigraphic levels to fulfill Minimum Work Obligation under the PSC.