Energy conglomerate Reliance Industries and its partner BP plc on Friday said they have made a second deep-water gas condensate discovery in the Cauvery basin. The discovery in the Block CY-DWN-201/2,which lies 62 kilometres from the coast,is being termed as significant as the well has been flowing about 1 million standard cubic metres per day of gas since August 17 when the discovery was made. This is the second discovery RIL which holds 70 per cent interest in the block has made in the block. It had,in 2007,made the Dhirubhai-35 (D-35) gas discovery,which the oil ministrys technical advisor,the DGH had termed as not viable at current price of $4.2 per million British thermal unit. Preliminary evaluation of well data and fluid samples indicated presence of gas condensate in the reservoir interval with a gross column of 143 meters, the two companies said in a press statement. The discovery was name D-56. According to the companies,the well flowed gas at the rate of 35.2 million standard cubic feet per day (1 mmscmd) with condensate at the rate of 413 barrels per day. BP holds 30 per cent stake in the block. RIL had drilled the first discovery well D-35 in July 2007 and a subsequent well to appraise the find in September 2009. Three other wells on the block were dry. The block was won by RIL in the third round of New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP). The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) had in its analysis of D-35 stated that the gas discovery was viable at no less than $6 per mmBtu gas price. D-35 alone can produce 150 million standard cubic feet per day of gas (a little less than 5 mmscmd) for 10 years from five development wells on the find. First gas is envisaged in four years. The discovery,according to the operator,holds 719 billion cubic feet of gas reserves,of which 62 per cent or 447 bcf can be recovered. Besides gas,the find also holds a small amount of oil - about 11 million barrels.
