ONGC to invest Rs 1 lakh crore in deepwater exploration over next 5 years, reports 3 new discoveries

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) plans to invest around Rs 1 lakh crore over the next five years in deepwater and ultra-deepwater exploration as India’s largest oil and gas producer intensifies its search for new hydrocarbon reserves. ONGC Chairman and CEO Arun Kumar Singh, addressing the company’s 33rd Annual General Meeting on Monday, said the company believes India’s next major oil and gas discoveries are likely to emerge from deepwater areas. The company plans to drill 87 deepwater and ultra-deepwater wells by March 2031 as part of the massive exploration campaign.

The push assumes significance as India remains heavily dependent on imported crude oil while production from several mature domestic fields is declining. ONGC is seeking major new discoveries to replenish reserves and arrest the decline in domestic oil and gas output.

Three new offshore discoveries

Singh said ONGC notified three new hydrocarbon discoveries in its operated offshore acreage during FY26. These comprise two oil-and-gas discoveries — Vajramani and MBS202HAA-1 — and the gas discovery MBS191HCA-1, all in the Mumbai Offshore region.

Testing completed during FY26 established 55 wells as hydrocarbon-bearing, including some wells drilled in previous years. ONGC has also cumulatively drilled 79 exploratory wells and made 13 hydrocarbon discoveries in blocks awarded under the Open Acreage Licensing Policy.

Reserve accretion on a proven-plus-probable, or 2P, basis from ONGC-operated areas in India stood at 44.01 million tonnes of oil equivalent during FY26. Its domestic Reserve Replacement Ratio stood at 1.17, indicating that the company added more reserves than it produced during the year.

ONGC has mobilised specialist expertise for its deepwater campaign and plans to intensify drilling activity over the coming years. It has also floated a tender for exploratory drilling in ultra-deepwater areas.

The company plans to drill eight deepwater and ultra-deepwater wells in FY27, followed by 10 in FY28, 20 in FY29, 22 in FY30 and 27 in FY31.

Samudra Manthan backs exploration push

ONGC’s plans coincide with the Centre’s Rs 84,084-crore Samudra Manthan, or National Offshore Exploration Scheme, approved to accelerate exploration in India’s offshore basins through FY31.

The programme is aimed at supporting seismic data acquisition, exploratory drilling in deepwater and ultra-deepwater areas and the development of common offshore infrastructure. The government expects the initiative to expand India’s hydrocarbon resource base and strengthen domestic energy security.

Singh said the scale of investment required for ONGC’s deepwater and ultra-deepwater exploration programme could reach around Rs 1 lakh crore over five years.

The company has already awarded AWDP-1, the first strategic well under the government-backed programme, in January this year.

Mumbai High redevelopment underway

ONGC is simultaneously attempting to extract more oil and gas from its mature producing assets. Singh highlighted the redevelopment of Mumbai High, which has been producing hydrocarbons for around five decades and is facing natural production decline.

ONGC awarded the first phase of its Mumbai High redevelopment programme to global energy major bp in December 2025. The project is expected to deliver cumulative incremental production of 2.699 million tonnes of oil and 2.806 billion cubic metres of natural gas by March 2040.

Singh said mature reservoirs require advanced recovery techniques, disciplined reservoir management and global expertise to sustain production.

ONGC’s deepwater push comes at a time when India is seeking to reduce its exposure to global energy disruptions and its substantial crude import bill. The company is betting that a sustained exploration campaign in largely untapped deep and ultra-deep waters could produce the major discoveries required to replenish ageing fields and strengthen the country’s long-term energy security.