New Delhi, Oct. 30 -- The Supreme Court on Friday appointed former judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai to mediate the $2.81 billion dispute between a Reliance Industries Ltd-led consortium and the Centre over alleged extraction of natural gas from ONGC's fields.

The decision came after both sides informed the bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant that there had been no progress in settlement efforts and that they had no objection to the appointment of a mediator.

"Let Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai be the mediator. She handles complex commercial disputes well. Let an expert from each side also assist her," the Chief Justice said.

Senior counsel Kapil Sibal, representing the consortium of Reliance Industries, the UK's British Pe...