The ninth round of India's Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) bid process has received strong interest from major oil and gas players, with 28 blocks receiving bids from Oil and Natural Gas Corp., Vedanta Ltd, Oil India Ltd, and Sun Petrochemicals.
For the first time Reliance Industries Ltd. along with its partner in KG D6 basin, BP Plc. joined hands with ONGC for a block in India.
Vedanta has placed bids for all 28 blocks on offer showing its faith in India's exploration blocks, when the global majors have stayed away. ONGC, the state-run oil major has bid for 19 blocks, either solo or in partnership with other companies.
ONGC has emerged as the sole bidder for 14 blocks and has joined forces with Oil India for two blocks and Indian Oil for another two blocks. Oil India has also placed bids for six blocks, while Sun Petrochemicals has shown interest in five blocks.
According to the data shared by Directorate General of Hydrocarbons, four blocks received three bids each, while the remaining blocks garnered two bids each. The bidding process closed on Sept. 21.
Under OALP blocks are awarded based on the highest revenue share offered by companies and their proposed work programmes. This bid round included nine onshore blocks, eight shallow-water blocks, and 11 ultra-deepwater blocks across eight sedimentary basins.
The government launched the OALP in 2017 to encourage oil and gas exploration, offering marketing and pricing freedom under a revenue-sharing model.
The OALP bid round IX aims to boost India's domestic oil and gas production, aligning with the government's vision of reducing dependence on imports.
India, UAE Ink Major Deals On LNG, Nuclear Energy, And Crude Oil Storage. Read more on Business News by NDTV Profit.