India Bets Big on Offshore Oil and Gas Search

India's Union Cabinet has approved a new offshore exploration scheme called Samudra Manthan, which will allocate ₹84,084 crore to search for oil and gas beneath India's seas.

The scheme aims to reduce the country's dependence on imported energy, which currently stands at 88.7%, with nearly nine out of every ten barrels of oil used coming from abroad.

The government will cover up to 50% of the eligible cost of a deepwater exploration well, capped at ₹675 crore per well, in order to share the upfront financial risk with private companies.

India's crude oil production has been declining for a decade, falling from 36.9 million tonnes in 2015-16 to 28.7 million tonnes in 2024-25, while its dependence on imported oil continues to rise.