ONGC Can Buy Stake in Mozambique Gas on its Own

India's state owned oil and gas company, Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), is ready to go alone for the $5-6 billion acquisition of a 20% stake in the Rovuma basin gas block in Mozambique, Hindustan Times reported.

The company also said that it was not in talks with any global major to share the cost of acquisition as funds were not a constraint, the newspaper said.

The block holds up to 60 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas.

Funding the Mozambique acquisition is not a concern for ONGC that is currently engaged in talks with both Videocon Industries and Anadarko Petroleum to buy out their respective 10% stake in the block, Sudhir Vasudeva, CMD, told Hindustan Times.

On whether ONGC will bid for the stake jointly with its prospective partner Shell India, Vasudeva said, "There is no such plan and besides we don't need any foreign player to join us for acquiring this 20% stake… We can do it all by ourselves, and Oil India was already there with it."