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Market Chatter: India's ONGC Videsh Visits Venezuela, Seeks Operatorship of Oil Projects

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A team from ONGC Videsh, the international exploration arm of India's state-run ONGC has arrived in Venezuela to review oil assets in the South American country, according to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, citing people familar with the matter.

This comes after the company received US approval to resume its operations in the country, along with sanctions and related restrictions being removed.

The company and its officials plan to see oil fields and meet Venezuelan energy officials, during the first such visit in several years.

ONGC Videsh already owned a 40% stake in the San Cristobal field and an 11% interest in the Carabobo-1 block, with refiners Indian Oil Corp. and Oil India Ltd. each owning a 3.5% stake in Carabobo-1.

OVL is in talks with Venezuela over a framework agreement and is seeking to become operator of both projects, Managing Director Rajarshi Gupta told reporters in New Delhi earlier this week.

"We do believe both the assets have substantial chance and possibility of multiplying production," Gupta said, while noting that the company was negotiating fiscal and operating terms, as well as subsurface conditions for evaluating the assets.

This marked a major shift in the diplomatic and energy relations between the two countries, after years of sanctions, with Venezuelan oil shipments to India already recovering in recent months.

ONGC Videsh did not immediately respond to' request for a comment on this story.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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