CHANDRALEKHA TULAL

Mumbai, May 28: The lure of black gold has enticed the Tatas to ramp up their presence in the oil and gas sector where they are a bit player now.

Tata Petrodyne, the fully owned, low-profile subsidiary of Tata Sons, will be the vehicle for the group's odyssey into oil. The company is involved with exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas.

It now plans to bid for oil and gas exploration blocks under the sixth round of new exploration licensing policy (Nelp-VI).

A limited exposure to the sector has prompted the company to hold talks with domestic and global oil players for a possible alliance.

Tata Petrodyne executive director V.K. Sharma said, "We have plans to participate in the bidding process for Nelp-VI, though the process and the operational details have not yet been crystallised."

"We are in discussions with several possible partners to form a consortium for the bidding process," he added. Besides the bid under Nelp-VI, the company is keen on acquiring other assets both at home and abroad.

"After the company was brought back into the fold of Tata Sons, the group holding company, Tata Petrodyne has been getting the attention required for the oil and gas business," Sharma said.

Incorporated in 1993 and originally promoted by Tata Industries, Tata Petrodyne had the mandate to spearhead the group's foray into oil and gas. The company was then brought into the fold of Tata Power to fit in with the group's strategy to consolidate all its energy businesses into a single entity.

However, the specifics of the business necessitated special attention and large investments. It was decided to bring the company under Tata Sons, which bought the company from Tata Power.

Tata Petrodyne has stakes in three oil and gas blocks acquired through bidding in the earlier rounds of the exploration policy. The bids were won and the projects implemented in alliance with both foreign and domestic oil companies.

The operators of the three blocks are Hardy Exploration and Production (India) Inc for the CY-OS-90/1 block, Cairn Energy for CB-OS/2 and ONGC for CB-OS/1.

Nelp-VI will offer 55 blocks, including 25 onshore, six shallow water and 24 deepwater ones. The government is also offering 10 blocks under the third round of the coal bed methane policy (CBM-III) for exploration and production of coal bed methane.

The bids for CBM-III will be accepted till June 30 and those for Nelp-VI till September 15. The winning bids will be announced four months after the bids are closed.