ONGC well blowout US experts to assist company in controlling gas leakage

    Sivasagar (Assam), Jun 19 (PTI) State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation on Thursday said experts from the US will assist the company in controlling the leakage of gas from a crude oil well in Assam's Sivasagar district, where a blowout took place eight days ago.
    In its daily bulletin on the blowout incident, ONGC said the foreign experts are likely to reach the site on Friday evening.
    "An international team of well control experts has been mobilised from the United States of America, and is expected to reach the site by the evening of June 20 to augment the response with specialised expertise," it said.
    The blowout took place on June 12 at a well of Rudrasagar oil field of ONGC at Barichuk of Bhatiapar. A private firm, S K Petro Services, was operating the well on behalf of the ‘Maharatna’ company.
    ONGC also said it continues to make concerted efforts to control the unabated gas discharge from the well.
    "Multiple junk shot operations using different combinations of materials and pressure ranges have been undertaken," it said.
    Meanwhile, the energy major has also initiated the development of an alternate route to facilitate safe and efficient movement in and out of the well site.
    "Further, bunk houses and non-essential equipment are also being removed from the vicinity. Water blanketing operations are being maintained round-the-clock as a key safety measure," it said.
    Preparations for the next phase of well control, including dynamic well-killing strategies, are progressing steadily, ONGC said.
    "Ambient air quality monitoring in and around the well site is being conducted continuously. All parametres, including particulate matter (PM) levels and gas concentration, remain well within permissible limits," the bulletin said.
    The company stressed that it is continuously supporting the affected families with the help of the district administration.
    "ONGC remains fully committed to ensuring the safety of the local community and the environment, and is working in close coordination with national and international experts to resolve the situation at the earliest," it said.
    Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had on Wednesday urged Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep S Puri to ask the company to ramp up efforts to control the blowout in “mission mode”.
    Sarma wrote to Puri, and said locals believe that there has been "inadequate urgency and seriousness in ONGC's response" in trying to control the well.
    The prolonged nature of the incident is causing considerable distress in the surrounding villages, as more than 330 families have already been evacuated from their homes, and are being supported with basic relief and safety measures at a camp set up in nearby Bangaon, officials said.
    The Assam government had on Tuesday announced a financial aid of Rs 25,000 each to about 350 families affected by the blowout.
    An official of ONGC had earlier said it was an old crude well without production and a perforation job was underway for zone transfer at the time of the blowout.
    "Production was supposed to start from a new zone after the perforation work. At the time of the incident, the logging perforation operation was underway. Suddenly, gas started coming out in an uncontrolled manner immediately after the perforation, leading to the blowout," he had said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)