Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has ramped up its operations to enhance gas production in Tripura to support the state's power generation plants, an official announced. This move comes in response to reports of reduced gas supplies to various gas-based power plants in the region. For the fiscal year 2024-25, ONGC has set an ambitious target of producing 1,675 million standard cubic meters (MMSCM) of gas, up from 1,527 MMSCM achieved in the 2023-24 fiscal. To meet this goal, the company plans to drill 20 new wells and deploy an additional rig, bringing the total number of rigs to seven. Krishna Kumar, ONGC?s Tripura Asset Manager, explained that the company is also adopting cluster drilling techniques at existing well sites to expedite production. This approach leverages existing infrastructure and avoids the delays and costs associated with acquiring new land and obtaining fresh approvals. Due to rapid urbanisation in Tripura, using old wells for new drilling minimises the need for additional land acquisition and approval processes, which have become increasingly costly. Kumar highlighted the challenge of managing surplus gas, noting that if a unit at the Palatana power plant shuts down, it creates excess gas that other plants cannot accommodate, leading to losses for ONGC. State-run agencies operate the gas-based power plants in Tripura, and ONGC is focused on optimising gas utilisation to prevent such inefficiencies. (ET)