Deora in Sudan: Seeks to resolve OVL's payment dispute
On his maiden African Safari, Indian Petroleum Minister Murli Deora Monday pitched for more oil acreage for Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in Sudan while seeking resolution of dispute over payments for a pipeline that the state-owned firm built in the oil-rich nation.
Deora, who arrived here on Sunday on the first leg of his whirlwind four-nation tour, raised the issue of payment defaults on the pipeline ONGC Videsh (OVL) built in the African nation with the Sudanese Minister for Energy and Mining Awad Ahmed Al Jazz.
Sudan, which had in 2007 defaulted on payment of installments towards the cost of building 741-km pipeline from Khatroum to Port au Sudan, agreed to form a working group to resolve the issue within a month, official sources said.
The overseas investment arm (OVL) of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) built the project at a contracted price of USD 194 million. Repayments to OVL were to be made by Sudan over a period of nine years in 18 half yearly equated installments, the first installment being due on December 30, 2005.
OVL, which has interest in four blocks in Sudan which gives it 2.4 million tons of crude oil annually, wants to consolidate its operations and acquire more acreage in the African country.
- Database Search
- Unpaid Debt A comprehensive overview of the role of the Lundin Consortium in the oil war. ECOS calls upon the Swedish, Austrian and Malaysian governments to investigate whether, as a matter of international law, Lundin, OMV and Petronas 'were complicit in the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity by others during the period 1997-2003.’ In response, the Swedish Public Prosecutor for International crimes opened a criminal investigation into ‘links between Sweden and the reported crimes’.
- In Depth For more specific information about the Lundin court case please visit the Unpaid Debt dossier.
