ONGC said that its Sagar Samrat offshore drilling rig has been commissioned as a mobile offshore production unit (MOPU), which has started producing from the WO-16 cluster in the Arabian Sea.

In the coming days, Sagar Samrat MOPU is expected to handle up to 20,000 barrels per day of crude oil, said ONGC. It will have a maximum export gas capacity of 2.36 million cubic meters per day and is projected to add 6000bbls/day of oil to the company’s production.

According to the Indian government-owned energy company, the first oil from the WO-16 cluster flowed into the MOPU’s processing system followed by its dispatch to an onshore terminal.

The WO-16 cluster features four marginal fields located at a water depth of 75-80m. The fields are situated 130km off Mumbai, which is nearly 40km from the Mumbai High.

ONGC stated: “Since, no nearby facility exists to produce from this field, it was planned to install a MOPU for production, processing and transportation of oil and gas from WO-16 Cluster.”

In late 2011, ONGC awarded the contract to convert the Sagar Samrat jack-up rig into a MOPU to a consortium of Mercator Oil & Gas, Mercator Offshore (P), and Gulf Piping Company (GPC).

  Arabian Sea, India, Mumbai, Oil and gas industry news, Oil and gas news, ONGC, Sagar Samrat, WO-16 cluster