ID :
39468
Thu, 01/08/2009 - 05:26
Auther :
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http://m.oananews.org//node/39468
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Oil sector officers strike work; fuel supplies not hit yet
New Delhi, Jan 7 (PTI) Officers in 13 oil PSUs in the
country Wednesday defied orders of the Delhi High Court to go
on an indefinite strike, forcing shutdown of nation's largest
gas field and impacting operations in four key refineries but
fuel supplies were unaffected.
South Bassein gas field in western offshore was the first
casualty, with executives in Oil and Natural Gas Corp and gas
transporter GAIL India cutting supplies to power and
fertilizer units even before the strike began at 0600 hrs.
Crude oil production from Mumbai offshore fields was down
to 242,000 barrels per day from 342,000 bpd, while 44 million
standard cubic meters per day of gas was not in production.
The well-thought out methodology was repeated at Indian
Oil Corp's Panipat, Mathura, Koyali and Haldia refineries that
have a combined capacity of 39 million tons, with officers
starting the shutdown of the units Tuesday night.
However, refineries of Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan
Petroleum as well as standalone units at Chennai, Kochi,
Mangalore and in the North Eastern states functioned normally.
Senior management and Territorial Army was deployed to
refuel airplanes at airports and the same combination ensured
that petrol pumps and gas depots did not go dry.
"Fuel supplies are normal. There is no impact. We have
stocks of 15-20 days, so we need not worry on that count,"
Petroleum Secretary R S Pandey said.
With several states invoking ESMA, Oil Sector Officers
Association leadership, which has given the strike call to
press for higher wages, went into hiding to avoid arrest and
its President Amit Kumar did not answer calls on his mobile
phone fearing that his location might be revealed.
But speaking from an unlisted number, he told PTI that
"the strike is total in all oil PSUs except HPCL."
The hiding, however, did not stop the managements from
suspending 17 OSOA office-bearers including 11 from ONGC and
three each from IOC and GAIL. "We have not been able to serve
them the suspension notice as they are in hiding," an official
said.
Two office bearers of ONGC's officers union were arrested
by Delhi police under ESMA.
India's Home Minister P Chidambaram, who is to leave for
US, reviewed the impact of the agitation on fuel supplies and
any law and order situation developing anywhere in the
country. The review meeting was attended by Cabinet Secretary
K M Chandrasekhar and Pandey.
Pandey said efforts were on to resume gas production
from the western offshore fields. "I think we will be able to
do it shortly."
ONGC and GAIL blamed each other for the shutdown of
Bassein and adjoining gas fields.
While GAIL Chairman U D Choubey blamed ONGC for "reducing
gas supply pressure from its field at 0230 hrs and then
grinding it to a halt at 0600 hrs", ONGC officials said GAIL
refused to take supplies leading to build up of pipeline
pressure which forced the fields to be shutdown.
About 29 million standard cubic meters per day of gas
from South Bassein and satellite fields and another 15-16
mmscmd from privately operated Panna/Mukta and Tapti fields
was impacted. Reliance Industries-British Gas operated PMT
fields was producing only 1.5 mmscmd.
GAIL officers shutdown the Hazira gas processing facility
that feeds the nation's main trunk pipeline to Jagdishpur
(HVJ).
But ONGC's Uran gas processing plant in Maharashtra
continued to operate, receiving 12-13 mmscmd gas from Bombay
High, Neelam and Heera fields.
The strike resulted in truncated production from the
prime Mumbai High fields. During normal times, Mumbai High
produces about 240,000 bpd, Neelam and Heera another 72,000
bpd and 24,000-25,000 bpd is produced by South Bassein. Their
combined production today was 242,000 barrels.
The High Courts of Delhi and Guwahati have restrained
officers from going on strike but OSOA said it would not be
constrained by the High Court stay.
Amit Kumar said OSOA, which has called the strike to
protest against lower-than-expected pay increase, would not be
deterred by the High Court restrictions.
Choubey said GAIL is maintaining supplies to priority
sector including city gas operations in Gujarat and Mumbai
from the volumes already available in the pipeline.
"Aviation services are working normally. Our petrol pumps
are also operating normally," IOC Chairman Sarthak Behuria
said. But Haldia refinery has taken a complete shutdown while
its Panipat, Mathura and Koyali refineries was under 'cooling
down' -- a process before the units are completely shutdown.
"In Haldia, all units are being shutdown but at the other
three refineries some units will continue to operate," a
company official said.
The shutting down of IOC refineries may be bad news for
fuel supplies. But private refiners Reliance Industries and
Essar Oil have assured to make up for any shortfall.
"The petrol pumps and depots have stocks for 2-3 days. We
have to see if loading and dispatching is impacted," Behuria
said. PTI
country Wednesday defied orders of the Delhi High Court to go
on an indefinite strike, forcing shutdown of nation's largest
gas field and impacting operations in four key refineries but
fuel supplies were unaffected.
South Bassein gas field in western offshore was the first
casualty, with executives in Oil and Natural Gas Corp and gas
transporter GAIL India cutting supplies to power and
fertilizer units even before the strike began at 0600 hrs.
Crude oil production from Mumbai offshore fields was down
to 242,000 barrels per day from 342,000 bpd, while 44 million
standard cubic meters per day of gas was not in production.
The well-thought out methodology was repeated at Indian
Oil Corp's Panipat, Mathura, Koyali and Haldia refineries that
have a combined capacity of 39 million tons, with officers
starting the shutdown of the units Tuesday night.
However, refineries of Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan
Petroleum as well as standalone units at Chennai, Kochi,
Mangalore and in the North Eastern states functioned normally.
Senior management and Territorial Army was deployed to
refuel airplanes at airports and the same combination ensured
that petrol pumps and gas depots did not go dry.
"Fuel supplies are normal. There is no impact. We have
stocks of 15-20 days, so we need not worry on that count,"
Petroleum Secretary R S Pandey said.
With several states invoking ESMA, Oil Sector Officers
Association leadership, which has given the strike call to
press for higher wages, went into hiding to avoid arrest and
its President Amit Kumar did not answer calls on his mobile
phone fearing that his location might be revealed.
But speaking from an unlisted number, he told PTI that
"the strike is total in all oil PSUs except HPCL."
The hiding, however, did not stop the managements from
suspending 17 OSOA office-bearers including 11 from ONGC and
three each from IOC and GAIL. "We have not been able to serve
them the suspension notice as they are in hiding," an official
said.
Two office bearers of ONGC's officers union were arrested
by Delhi police under ESMA.
India's Home Minister P Chidambaram, who is to leave for
US, reviewed the impact of the agitation on fuel supplies and
any law and order situation developing anywhere in the
country. The review meeting was attended by Cabinet Secretary
K M Chandrasekhar and Pandey.
Pandey said efforts were on to resume gas production
from the western offshore fields. "I think we will be able to
do it shortly."
ONGC and GAIL blamed each other for the shutdown of
Bassein and adjoining gas fields.
While GAIL Chairman U D Choubey blamed ONGC for "reducing
gas supply pressure from its field at 0230 hrs and then
grinding it to a halt at 0600 hrs", ONGC officials said GAIL
refused to take supplies leading to build up of pipeline
pressure which forced the fields to be shutdown.
About 29 million standard cubic meters per day of gas
from South Bassein and satellite fields and another 15-16
mmscmd from privately operated Panna/Mukta and Tapti fields
was impacted. Reliance Industries-British Gas operated PMT
fields was producing only 1.5 mmscmd.
GAIL officers shutdown the Hazira gas processing facility
that feeds the nation's main trunk pipeline to Jagdishpur
(HVJ).
But ONGC's Uran gas processing plant in Maharashtra
continued to operate, receiving 12-13 mmscmd gas from Bombay
High, Neelam and Heera fields.
The strike resulted in truncated production from the
prime Mumbai High fields. During normal times, Mumbai High
produces about 240,000 bpd, Neelam and Heera another 72,000
bpd and 24,000-25,000 bpd is produced by South Bassein. Their
combined production today was 242,000 barrels.
The High Courts of Delhi and Guwahati have restrained
officers from going on strike but OSOA said it would not be
constrained by the High Court stay.
Amit Kumar said OSOA, which has called the strike to
protest against lower-than-expected pay increase, would not be
deterred by the High Court restrictions.
Choubey said GAIL is maintaining supplies to priority
sector including city gas operations in Gujarat and Mumbai
from the volumes already available in the pipeline.
"Aviation services are working normally. Our petrol pumps
are also operating normally," IOC Chairman Sarthak Behuria
said. But Haldia refinery has taken a complete shutdown while
its Panipat, Mathura and Koyali refineries was under 'cooling
down' -- a process before the units are completely shutdown.
"In Haldia, all units are being shutdown but at the other
three refineries some units will continue to operate," a
company official said.
The shutting down of IOC refineries may be bad news for
fuel supplies. But private refiners Reliance Industries and
Essar Oil have assured to make up for any shortfall.
"The petrol pumps and depots have stocks for 2-3 days. We
have to see if loading and dispatching is impacted," Behuria
said. PTI
