Reliance buys stake to explore oil in Peru

Reliance Industries Ltd has signed an agreement to buy a 90 percent stake in an exploration block in Peru, a top company official said.

"It is a part of our international growth strategy. Our priority is that we are looking at heavy oil portfolio," the head of Reliance's petroleum business, P.M.S. Prasad, told reporters on Wednesday.




He said Reliance had agreed to acquire 90 percent of Block-141 in Peru from Pan Andean Resources Plc, a South-America-focused oil and gas explorer.

Prasad did not disclose the value of the deal.

In December, the president of Reliance's international oil business, Atul Chandra, said the company aimed to produce about 300,000 barrels per day of oil abroad and 100,000 bpd in India to ensure supply security for its refineries.




Reliance operates a 660,000 bpd refinery at Jamnagar in western India and its subsidiary, Reliance Petroleum, is building another 580,000 bpd plant adjacent to the existing one