Sagar Samrat begins operation of Mumbai Coast

On December 23, 2022, the renowned ONGC "Sagar Samrat" offshore drilling rig was put into operation as a Mobile Offshore Production Unit (MOPU). Sagar Samrat MOPU is anticipated to add 6000 barrels of oil per day to ONGC's production in the coming days. It will handle up to 20,000 barrels of crude oil per day and have a maximum export gas capacity of 2.36 million cubic meters per day.

The MOPU processing system received the initial oil from the WO-16 cluster, which was then sent to the onshore terminal. At a water depth of 75-80 meters and 130 kilometers from Mumbai, WO-16 is a group of four marginal fields in the Arabian Sea, approximately 40 kilometers from the Mumbai High. It was planned to install a MOPU for the production, processing, and transportation of oil and gas from WO-16 Cluster because there is no nearby facility that can produce from this field.

On November 17, 2011, a consortium consisting of Mercator Oil & Gas Ltd., Mercator Offshore (P) Ltd., and Gulf Piping Company (GPC) was awarded the project to turn the Jack-up rig Sagar Samrat into a MOPU. The MOPU was successfully installed on April 16, 2022, close to the WO-16 wellhead platform, following statutory clearances and several obstacles, including legal challenges and Covid-19.

The Sagar Samrat conversion project is one of ONGC's most difficult projects.The MOPU stands tall in the Arabian Sea as evidence of the numerous difficult decisions taken during its execution and the excellent stakeholder consultation carried out by ONGC that ultimately resulted in the required outcome.