Australia's Galilee, India's Essar sign MoU on CBM
Australian company Galilee Energy on July 12 announced the signing of a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with India's Essar Exploration and Production (EEPL) to explore collaboration opportunities for their coalbed methane (CBM) assets in Australia and India.
The MoU aims to facilitate mutual commercial agreements between Galilee's Glenaras gas project in Australia and Essar's Raniganj CBM field in India. This could involve farmin and/or investment arrangements. Galilee will also provide technical and engineering support to assist Essar in optimising the expansion of their Raniganj field.
David Casey, CEO of Galilee Energy, said that Essar's interest in the Glenaras gas project could be instrumental in transitioning the significant contingent resources of the asset into production, particularly considering the tightening Australian east coast gas market. Galilee's experienced staff will offer their expertise to support Essar's expansion plans for the Raniganj field, he added.
EEPL is a subsidiary of Essar Global Fund, a global investor. Essar Oil and Gas Exploration and Production (EOGEPL), a subsidiary of EEPL, has been operating in India for about 25 years and holds a CBM and shale gas resource base of 12 trillion ft3.
Galilee Energy's Glenaras gas project, located in the Galilee basin, is close to commercialisation. Previously, Galilee had partnered with Indian state-owned Oil India (OIL) to collaborate on CBM projects in India and Australia.