Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has spudded its first deepwater exploration well, MN-DW18-1-H-D, in the Mahanadi Basin under the Government’s Samudra Manthan Mission.
The well is being drilled about 23 nautical miles from Konark off the Odisha coast, marking the start of one of India’s most challenging deepwater exploration campaigns.
Major exploration milestone
The spudding is a significant milestone under the Centre’s Samudra Manthan Campaign and the beginning of an ambitious programme to explore India’s deep and ultra-deepwater energy resources.
ONGC said every prospect evaluated, well drilled and discovery made under the programme would contribute to enhancing domestic oil and gas production, reducing import dependence and strengthening India’s energy security and self-reliance.
Boosting offshore exploration
The development comes as the Government pushes for greater exploration of India’s untapped offshore hydrocarbon resources.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recently called for accelerated efforts to harness offshore oil and gas potential, following which the Government opened nearly one million square kilometres of previously restricted offshore areas for exploration through upcoming Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) rounds.
Large hydrocarbon potential
India’s eastern and western offshore basins, extending to water depths of up to 3,000 metres, are estimated to hold more than 5,600 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent (MMTOE) of hydrocarbon potential.
Recent exploration successes in the Cauvery, Mahanadi and Andaman basins have further strengthened the outlook for India’s offshore frontier areas.
DeepX supports mission
To support the national deepwater exploration effort, ONGC launched its flagship Deepwater Exploration Mission Centre, DeepX, in Mumbai in January.
DeepX brings together ONGC’s geoscientific expertise, advanced interpretation capabilities, specialised training programmes and global collaborations under the company’s “One Company, One Data” framework.
Focus on Mahanadi Basin
ONGC said its recent Utkal and Konark discoveries have improved the hydrocarbon prospectivity of the Mahanadi Offshore Basin, with deepwater exploration now representing the next frontier for the region.