OREANDA-NEWS. March 5, 2011. State-run Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) plans to invest over 17,000 crore on onshore operations in Gujarat over the next five years. ONGC will also set up a 10-MW solar power project in the state with an investment of 150 crore.

Under the programmme, the company has earmarked over 8,000 crore for revamping its 90 installations, including 200 km-long pipeline network and 65 tanks in the state. It is also commissioning 850 km of new pipelines at an investment of 670 crore.

"We have already received sanction for majority of the proposed projects for Ahmedabad, Mehsana and Ankleshwar assets. The objective of the projects is to maintain production in the old fields while developing new fields in Cambay basin at an investment of 700 crore," ONGC Ahmedabad Asset executive director Anil Johri told ET. "ONGC will also drill 300 new wells in different parts of the state," Johri said, adding that the investment plan for the state had been conveyed to the state government during the investors' meet in January.

ONGC is also pumping money into its plants at Hazira and Dahej. Nearly 2,570 crore will be invested in Hazira for value-added products, additional gas processing and a naphtha line to Dahej. With this, gas processing capacity of the Hazira complex will increases to 46 million cubic meter from 41 million currently. The project is expected to be commissioned in the next 18 months.

At Dahej, ONGC is commissioning a unit to produce raw material for the plastics industry at an investment of 730 crore. It will spend 4,350 crore for development, drilling and commissioning of various installations.