Oil and gas in Deccan Traps

ONGC strikes petroleum in Deccan Traps

The Times of India, on 1st May 2008, reported that the ONGC has struck oil and gas in the Deccan Traps. This is sure to be a path-breaking discovery, says the report by Rajeev Jayaswal. This comes in the wake of its discoveries of gas in Kunjaban-3 well in north Agarthala in Tripura, and oil in the Karjan-9 well in the Halisa field of Gujrat. The report goes on to say that India can become the top oil-producing nation, if the Trap oil and gas is successfully exploited. A reserve of about 30 billion tons is estimated in these Cretaceous rock formations.

The Mesozoic sediments below the Deccan Traps are highly prospective, the report cites an expert. Geophysical surveys for the oil below the traps were done by the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) Hyderabad and the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons. They found sub-trappean Mesozoic to Gondwana age sediments with a maximum thickness of three kilometers.