http://www.colombopage.com/archive_11B/Oct02_1317567344CH.php

Sri Lanka President announces finding natural gas in Mannar basinSun, Oct 2, 2011, 08:25 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
Oct 02, Kandy: Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Sunday officially announced the finding of a natural gas field in the northwestern seas off Mannar for the first time.
Addressing a function at the President's official residence in Kandy, the President has announced that Cairn Lanka, the company conducting the exploration has discovered the gas deposits and informed him today.
"President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing a meeting in Kandy today announced that exploration teams have found a gas field in Sri Lanka," the government information department said in a statement.
Cairn Lanka, which began oil drilling operations in the Mannar basin in August, has confirmed that it had informed the Sri Lankan authorities about the finding, foreign media reported.
The President has said that he is elated of the new discovery and expressed confidence that Sri Lanka will harness crude oil from its own oil fields.
Cairn India, the parent company of Cairn Lanka, in a statement issued Sunday has said that the discovery was made at a depth of 1,354 metres (4,442 feet) below sea level, a Reuters report said. Cairn has said that further drilling will be required to establish the commercial viability of the discovery.
Cairn has said earlier If Sri Lanka's drilling program is successful then commercial oil production can be expected by 2014 with a billion barrels.
The Block SL 2007-01-001 was awarded to Cairn in the 2008 Sri Lanka bid round. Cairn Lanka (Private) Limited, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cairn India and holds a 100% participating interest in the Mannar block.
Mannar basin has eight oil and gas exploration blocks and two of them have been granted to China and India. Officials of Russia's largest oil company, Gazprom recently visited Sri Lanka to hold discussions on oil exploration in the Mannar Basin.