India commits $8.8bn to boost offshore oil and gas

BP India has approved an investment programme worth up to 840.84bn rupees ($8.8bn) to accelerate offshore oil and gas exploration over the next five years. The National Offshore Exploration Scheme will run until the end of the 2030-31 financial year and is expected to speed up the addition of more than 600m tonnes of discoverable oil equivalent to the country’s reserves. The programme will fund seismic surveys, data processing and interpretation, as well as exploration drilling in deepwater and ultra-deepwater areas. It will also support scientific drilling in frontier basins, shared offshore production and evacuation infrastructure, and the creation of an integrated oil and gas manufacturing and services zone. The government said the scheme would encourage investment across the exploration and production supply chain, create long-term opportunities for companies, and strengthen domestic technical capabilities. India has opened most of its offshore acreage to exploration over the past decade while updating its legal and contractual framework and expanding the National Data Repository. The latest initiative forms part of the country’s efforts to reduce its dependence on imported energy. India currently produces only around 10% of the crude oil it consumes and is the world’s third-largest oil importer and second-largest buyer of LPG. The government has also widened its crude supply base from 27 to 41 countries. Prime minister Narendra Modi first announced the offshore exploration mission in an address in August last year. The cabinet separately approved a $530m programme for floating solar photovoltaic developments with energy storage. The plan targets 102 GW of capacity on reservoirs, canals, and industrial water bodies over five years and is expected to prevent 10m tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. Follow Us Bojan Lepic Bojan is an English language professor turned journalist with years of experience covering the energy industry with a focus on the oil, gas, and LNG industries as well as reporting on the rise of the energy transition. Previously, he had written for Navingo media group titles including Offshore Energy Today and LNG World News. Before joining Splash, Bojan worked as an editor for Rigzone online magazine. Newsletter DAILY SPLASH NEWSLETTER Subscribe now for FREE daily news updates. Subscribe Read Next August 3, 2026 Ditas doubles down on suezmaxes with Samsung brace August 3, 2026 BP exit puts fresh pressure on UK over Jackdaw and Rosebank August 3, 2026 North Star secures $370m to fuel offshore wind fleet growth August 3, 2026 Tanker asset values stay red hot August 3, 2026 NYK moves to absorb NS United in near $1bn deal Back to top button