The discoveries were made in Kameshwari West-2 and Kameshwari West-3 wells, the company said in a press release.

The Kameshwari West-2 discovery is located 12 km north west of the 2003 Kameshwari discovery and 56 km south of the Mangala field. The well encountered 18.2 metres of net pay in the lower Dharvi Dungar formation from a gross interval of 40 m.

The Kameshwari West-3 discovery is located 10.6 km to the north of Kameshwari West-2 and encountered up to 16 m of gas pay in tight lower Dharvi Dungar reservoir rock in a potential column of over 100 m. The well TD is 1499 m MD. Test results in the upper interval confirmed the presence of a gas pool which flowed at approximately 75,000 scfd. The deeper test of the potential oil accumulation remains inconclusive due to the tight nature of the reservoir rock.

Cairn said the government has awarded the company a six month extension to the exploration phase of the Northern Appraisal Area (NAA) of the Rajasthan licence RJ-ON-90/1 from May 2007.

"The extension will allow the company to carry out an appraisal programme to delineate and explore the full potential of the Northern Appraisal Area (NAA), which covers an area of 879 sq km. These discoveries have opened up a new play in the lower Dharvi Dungar sands on the western margin of the Rajasthan basin," Cairn said in a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

"Cairn India is delighted to have secured this extension in order to further evaluate the potential of this area. The two discoveries confirm our belief that the Rajasthan basin is world class and will continue to add incremental value," Rahul Dhir, chief executive officer of the company, said.

PIN/DOMAIN-B.COM