India's state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has proposed to Bangladesh a joint search for gas in as yet unexplored blocks.

A director of the Indian company, A.K. Balyan, made the formal proposal last week in a letter to A.K.M. Mosharraf Hossain, Bangladesh state minister for energy and mineral resources, the daily New Age reported Monday.

The Indian company said it was interested in joint exploration of gas with Bangladesh's state-run company Petrobangla.

The Bangladesh government is making preparations for production sharing contracts for the unexplored blocks.

Hossain said that the government is planning to go for a third round of bidding for the blocks.

"So, if any company wants to go for exploration it has to go through the bidding process once the government finalises its decision. No company will get any special attention," he said.    

The newspaper quoted the minister as saying that ONGC's proposal was the latest offer, in a series made in the last few months, by companies from different countries including China, Thailand and Malaysia for exploration of gas in offshore blocks.

"We have got five to six proposals from different countries for gas exploration, especially in the offshore blocks," the minister said.

Hossain said it was a good sign that foreign companies were showing interest in exploration, since it underscored the probability that there was sufficient gas in the Bangladesh part of the Bay of Bengal.

The country was divided into 23 blocks, including seven offshore blocks, for hydrocarbon exploration in 1993.

In the first round of bidding, four mainland blocks - 12, 13, 14 and 22 - and four offshore blocks - 15, 16, 17 and 18 - were handed over to international oil companies under the production sharing contract without any tender, although it was called the first round of bidding.

In the second round of bidding in 1997, open tender was floated for the remaining 15 blocks and, after two years, four blocks - 5, 7, 9 and 10 - were awarded to international oil companies, and two - 8 and 11 - to the Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Ltd.

Britain-based Cairn Energy discovered gas in Sangu, offshore block 16, in 1996. Exploration is yet to be started in offshore blocks 19, 20 and 21.

--Indo-Asian News Service