Bengal Energy Inc. announced that the Government of the State of Tamil Nadu has granted a formal Petroleum Exploration License on 234,000 acres in India's Cauvery Basin to a consortium including Bengal. Bengal has a 30% interest in the onshore block CY-ONN-2005/1 while the Gail India Ltd. holds a 40% interest and the Gujarat State Petroleum Corp. Ltd. holds the remaining 30% interest. The consortium signed a Production Sharing Contract with the Government of India in December 2008. Exploration work is expected to begin immediately. In the first year of the four-year agreement, Bengal and its partners plan to undertake an aggressive exploration campaign consisting initially of 2,300 km of airborne magnetometry and reprocessing 1,700 km of 2D seismic data. Subsequent design and acquisition of a large area 3D seismic program will follow. Exploratory drilling targets have already been identified from a variety of different play types at drilling depths ranging from 500 to 2,000 metres. Two untested basement highlands cover nearly one-third of the block. These highlands are believed prospective for granite wash oil targets, an established play type in the Cauvery Basin. The existing and additional new exploration targets are anticipated to be mature enough for drilling beginning in 2011.

GAIL India and the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) plan to establish a joint venture company for distributing gas to industrial consumers in the State. Operations the equity and debt components are being worked out. From the date of formation, the company will take about nine months to become operational. Preliminary studies show that the State's gas requirement is about 40 million standard cubic metres a day, of which about 60% demand is from the industrial segment. MIDC is also in talks with Reliance Industries and the Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation for similar tie-ups. GAIL India said that in the first phase, the joint venture company would tap GAIL's trunk pipe line between Tarapur (near Mumbai) with Dabhol (Ratnagiri) for distribution to the industrial areas en route. An industrial gas corridor is being envisaged along the trunk line between the two locations. The MIDC-managed industrial estates will get supply on priority basis, as the right of way in these areas rests with MIDC and hence laying of pipelines would by relatively easy. Issues, delays Gas will also be made available to non-MIDC industrial estates and to residential areas. The Maharashtra Government and MIDC have been trying to set up a gas grid in the State for the last five years. However, regulatory issues and delays in routing of supply by the gas companies have hampered the efforts.

Gail India Ltd. announced that the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Government of India, vide letter bearing No. 31022/2/202009-CA dated February 24, 2010 has appointed Prabhat Singh as Director (Marketing) of the company, effective February 24, 2010.

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