Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) today said it would invest Rs 19,338 crore

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in oil and gas hunt during the current fiscal, about 10 per cent more than Rs 17,651 crore in the previous year.

"Improving the reserve replacement ratio by intensifying exploratory efforts is company's first priority," Chairman R S Sharma told company shareholders.

"Improving recovery factor, arresting decline in mature fields and expeditious development of discovered fields are the other priorities," he said.

ONGC declared Rs 14 per share final dividend for 2007-08, which is over and above Rs 18 per share interim dividend in December.

Sharma said ONGC will invest over five billion dollar in developing gas finds in eastern offshore Krishna Godavari basin blocks -- KG-DWN-98/2 and KG-OS-DW4.

The company's overseas arm ONGC Videsh Ltd is targeting 39.47 million tons of oil and oil equivalent gas from overseas properties in XIth Plan as against 23.25 million tons during Xth Plan.

ONGC's refinery subsidiary Mangalore Refinery is on track for expanding its capacity to 15 million tons by 2010.