The oil and gas sector is one of the eight core industries in India. India’s economic growth is closely tied to its energy demand, which is projected to rise. This increasing need for oil and gas makes the sector highly attractive for investment. businessline’s Rishi Ranjan Kala speaks to Sushma Rawat, Director (Exploration) at Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), in this State of the Economy podcast on the importance of oil exploration to boost India’s economic growth.  


Rawat emphasises the importance of exploration in the oil and gas sector, explaining that it forms the foundation of the hydrocarbon industry. Exploration involves understanding the subsurface geology, tectonics, and petroleum systems to locate potential oil and gas reserves. India has 26 sedimentary basins, with ONGC responsible for significant discoveries outside Assam since its inception in 1956. The exploration process includes surface geological prospecting, geochemical prospecting, seismic studies, and drilling exploratory wells. 


She highlights ONGC's efforts to increase domestic production, noting that only 10 per cent of India's sedimentary basinal area has been appraised so far. ONGC is working to expand this appraisal, and recent major discoveries, such as those in the Mahanadi offshore basin, indicate promising potential. She also points out that exploration contributes to the nation's wealth, with ONGC having a prognosticated resource base of around 42 billion tonnes of oil and oil-equivalent gas, of which only a fraction has been discovered. 


In the context of energy transition and the growing importance of green energy, Rawat outlines ONGC's strategies to adapt. She mentions the significance of gas as a transitional fuel, noting ONGC's efforts to increase gas production and explore alternative energy sources like natural hydrogen and geothermal energy. Additionally, she discusses the potential of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and the use of gas-based power plants as cleaner energy sources. 


Rawat also discusses ONGC's partnerships with international oil and gas majors, such as Exxon, Chevron, Total, Shell, and Equinor, to enhance exploration efforts. These partnerships involve joint technical studies and data sharing, particularly focusing on the eastern and western offshore basins. She expresses optimism about the upcoming offshore bid rounds and potential amendments to the Orda Act, which could attract more international interest. 


She outlines ONGC's plans to significantly increase its exploration acreage from the current 1.92 lakh square kilometers to 5 lakh square kilometers within the next two years. This expansion will require substantial capital expenditure (CapEx) for data acquisition, processing, and exploratory drilling. ONGC aims to shorten the cycle from discovery to production and is investing in advanced technologies for deep and ultra-deep water exploration. 


 


(Host: Rishi Ranjan Kala, Producer: Anjana PV)






About the State of the Economy podcast 


India’s economy has been hailed as a bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several sectors continue to stutter even as others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups

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