India Launches Deepwater Oil and Gas Exploration Mission

India is launching a national deepwater exploration mission to tap more of its energy resources, boost domestic energy supply, and reduce dependence on imports, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday. “India will harness its deepwater energy resources, strengthening energy self-reliance and reducing dependence on foreign fuel imports,” Modi said in his address on the country’s Independence Day. India is also boosting its renewable energy capacity, with advances in solar, nuclear, hydro, and hydrogen energy, according to the prime minister. The deepwater exploration mission will add to another mission, the National Critical Minerals Mission, to secure resources essential for energy, industry, and defense. India intends to launch exploration at 1,200 sites for critical minerals. “Controlling these minerals strengthens strategic autonomy, ensuring India’s industrial and defense sectors remain self-reliant,” Modi said. India prepares for an offshore exploration boom after launching the biggest-ever acreage up for grabs under the Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) Round X. “The focus is clearly on further enhancing and strengthening domestic E&P efforts,” Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, posted on X last month while visiting an offshore industry event in Bergen, Norway. “India’s energy journey offers engagement opportunities with Indian companies across multiple areas, including joint participation in the upcoming OALP-X bidding round, collaboration on subsea manifold and offshore technology development, apart from deploying AI-driven solutions for digital transformation in upstream operations,” the Indian minister added. India is looking to boost its domestic oil and gas production amid constantly rising demand and volatile international energy prices. The country depends on imports for more than 85% of its daily oil consumption. India’s dependence on crude oil imports set a record high in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2025, as Indian fuel demand continues to grow while domestic crude production remains flat. India imported 88.2% of the crude it consumed in the April 2024-February 2025 period. The import dependence increased from 87.7% in the same period of the 2023/2024 fiscal year. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com