Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has made a huge gas discovery in the deep-sea Bay of Bengal, but officials said it was too early to estimate the size of reserves.ONGC struck gas in the the Krishna-Godavari basin Block KG-DWN-98/2, which is adjacent to Reliance’s’ D6 block, where 11.9 trillion cubic feet of certified in-place gas reserves have been struck till date. Officials said the gas find could be at least half the size of Reliance’s discovery. “Its a good find. We have struck 77 metres thick gas pay zone (reserve strip) in one well.” However, further tests have to be done to determine the size of the reserves.While Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar confirmed the find, ONGC Director (Offshore) N.K. Mitra said, “A lot of formalities have to be completed for an announcement before the potential reserves can be made. We are governed by Sebi rules and reserves have to be first tested and then verified by directorate general of hydrocarbons (the upstream regulator) before they can be quantified and announcements made,” he said.
