India has several Guyana-sized energy reserves in Andamans: Hardeep Puri
New Delhi [India], June 16 (ANI): India is putting in all kinds of effort to ramp up its own traditional fossil-based energy production, and the latest push is to dig deep in the Andaman region.
Talking to ANI on Monday, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister, Hardeep Puri, outlined several measures the government has been taking over the years for exploration and production. He also noted the exploration in the Andamans is pointing to 'good news' and may end up becoming India's 'Guyana moment'.
The minister said India has 3.5 million square kilometres of sedimentary basin, but it never explored beyond eight per cent area, keeping a large expanse of sea beds untapped and unexplored.
Puri said that it is their government which had decided to explore a large part of the basin.
'There were parts of the sedimentary basin which were no-go areas. So one of the decisions which we took was that 1 million square kilometres of that sedimentary basin, which was no-go area, has suddenly been made available for E&P,' the minister said.
So far in the nine round of open acreage licensing policy, 38 per cent of the bids came in that 1 million square kilometres and the Minister expects that in the next round -- for which work is going on right now - will attract more than 75 per cent of the bids.
'We've also issued some of the largest bids on offer anywhere -- something like 2.5 lakh square kilometres of area has been offered out on bidding,' the minister said.
The minister said that India has the potential of something around 42 billion tonnes of oil and gas equivalent in its sedimentary basins.
Exploring offshore reserves are capital extensive, and which is why it took so much time for India to tap the untapped potential under its seas.
'An onshore well costs something like USD 4 million on an average. I'm talking about global rates and dollar rates being held at a particular constant. And an offshore well costs about USD 100 million,' he supplemented.
ONGC, which is India's premier company for exploration and production, has dug the largest number of wells in nearly four decades this year, the minister said.
Referring to Guyana, which has recently discovered a massive oil reserves after dozens of failed attempts, the minister said India also has potential for 'several Guyanas' in the Andaman region.
'They (Guyana) dug 46 wells and they didn't find any oil. It's when they dug the 47th one, they found oil. And then it became the largest find,' the minister said.
Against that context, the Minister said, 'we have the potential of several Guyanas in the Andaman.'
The minister also highlighted a few wells which India dug recently and found oil and gas reserves.
In Suryamani, he said, a potential of 4 million metric tons of oil equivalent was found. In Neelmani, a potential of 1.2 million metric tons of oil equivalent was found.
In another well, at a depth of of 2,865 metres, both oil and gas reserves were found, the minister said.
'This is under estimation. They're still trying to find out, but they have struck,' he added.
In 2023 24 under OALP 3, in another well, at 2,957 metres depth, around 5 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent was found.
Citing all these data, he drove the point that India has got the green shoots.
'Each place you found the oil, now you're estimating it, then you're digging deeper and deeper. As we speak, we have four places where ONGC and Oil India Limited are digging at 5,000 metres,' he told ANI.
India today imports 80 per cent of its oil and 50 per cent of its natural gas needs.
Last week, the minister held a review meeting with the petroleum secretary and heads of Indian energy PSUs. After the meeting, the minister said that India has adequate energy supplies for the coming months.
The oil supply update by the minister attaches importance, given that the international oil prices shot up sharply amid Israel-Iran conflict.
India is now importing oil and gas from as many countries as possible to meet its demand. (ANI)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
33 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Trump Mobile's T1 phone: How much will the gold smartphone cost and how to pre-order now?
The Trump family on Monday said it is starting a new mobile phone service. The president's son, Eric, said that the new venture is called Trump Mobile and it will sell phones that will be built in the US. He further announced a new mobile phone and service, called T1 Phone, which will be gold and is 'proudly designed and built in the United States'. The T1 Phone is currently available for pre-order, per the Trump Mobile website. The phone will be available in September. Customers can also subscribe to 'Trump Mobile' with their current mobile device. Read More: Trump Mobile released, T1 phone to be launched Sept 2025 | What do they offer? 'Hard-working Americans deserve a wireless service that's affordable, reflects their values, and delivers reliable quality they can count on,' Eric Trump said in a statement on Monday. The Trump Organization said the new, gold-coloured phone available for USD 499 in August, called the T1 Phone, won't be designed or made by Trump Mobile, but by another company. Retail Price: The T1 Phone is priced at $499. A $100 deposit is required for pre-orders. Service Plan: The accompanying '47 Plan' costs $47.45/month, offering unlimited talk, text, and data, plus extras like telehealth and roadside assistance. Announced Release: Trump Mobile's press release states the T1 Phone will launch in August 2025, but the official website lists September 2025. Pre-Order Status: Pre-orders are open as of June 16, 2025, with a $100 deposit. Read More: Trump Mobile copying Obama's phone strategy? Here's how the two plans are different The T1 runs Android 15 with a 6.8-inch AMOLED display (120Hz), 50MP main camera, 12GB RAM, 256GB expandable storage, 5,000mAh battery, and features like a headphone jack and AI Face Unlock. However, the chipset is unspecified, and the camera quality is questioned. A 250-seat customer service center will be set up in the US to assist subscribers. Customers will be able to switch to the Trump Mobile network with their current phones,or connect with the new Android-based T1.
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
India's Exports To US Rise 16.9% To $8.83 Billion, Imports Dip 5.76% In May
New Delhi: India's merchandise exports to the US rose by 16.93 per cent to USD 8.83 billion in May, while imports dipped by 5.76 per cent to USD 3.62 billion during the month, according to the commerce ministry data. During April-May, the country's exports to the US increased by 21.78 per cent to USD 17.25 billion, while imports rose by 25.8 per cent to USD 8.87 billion, the data showed. When asked about the impact of high tariffs imposed by the US on steel, aluminium and auto parts, Special Secretary in the Department of Commerce Rajesh Agrawal said India does not export a lot of steel and aluminium to the US. There is a uniform duty on auto components for all countries, so "we have not seen a big dent" on the sector. But if it continues for long, there could be some impact. If some countries will get exemptions from this duty then it may impact Indian players, he added. The US has imposed 25 per cent tariffs on these products. The US was the second-largest trading partner of India in April-May. China, another major trading partner of India, saw a 25 per cent jump in exports from India to USD 1.64 billion in May and 18.75 per cent growth in April-May to USD 3.04 billion. Imports from the neighbouring country in May rose by 21.16 per cent to USD 10.31 billion while in April-May by 24.23 per cent to USD 20.22 billion. Singapore, Germany, Australia, Belgium, Korea and Russia were also among the countries which saw positive growth in exports from India in May. However, exports to the UAE, the Netherlands, the UK, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Italy, France, Malaysia, and Brazil declined in May. On the imports front, inbound shipments in May declined from nations including Russia, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Qatar. However, imports rose from the UAE, Japan, Korea, Singapore and Germany. Commenting on the data, economic think tank GTRI said that India and China's latest trade figures showed how the US-China trade war is reshaping global trade flows. Released by China Customs on June 10 and India's Commerce Ministry on June 16, the May trade data reveals a sharp drop in China's exports to the US and a noticeable redirection of trade to markets like India, the EU, and ASEAN. "India's import surge in electronics and machinery, much of it from China, and rising exports to the US suggest that global supply chains are adapting quickly. The numbers also signal rising risks for India amid Middle East tensions and a more protectionist trade environment," GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said. The decline in China's shipments to the US is being partially offset by increased exports to other markets, including the EU (up 12 per cent to USD 49.5 billion), ASEAN (up 15 per cent to USD 58.4 billion), and notably, India (up 12.4 per cent to USD 11.13 billion). Two categories with high import growth stood out - electronics (up 27.5 per cent to USD 9.1 billion) and machinery and computers (up 22 per cent to USD 5 billion). "Part of this increase originated in China, as India's combined imports from China and Hong Kong surged by 22.4 per cent , from USD 9.8 billion to USD 12 billion," he said.
India Gazette
an hour ago
- India Gazette
TRAI launches pilot project for Digital Consent Management, aiming to curb spam
New Delhi [India], June 16 (ANI): Having observed that a large number of spam complaints are made by the customers against the business entities from whom the consumers have earlier purchased goods or services, TRAI has launched a pilot project for Digital Consent Management in partnership with RBI and banks. On investigation of spam, TRAI came to the conclusion that such business entities often claim that they possess the consent of the consumer for receiving commercial calls and messages. Under the regulatory framework defined by the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations (TCCCPR), 2018, an entity can make commercial communications to a consumer irrespective of his/her Do Not Disturb (DND) preferences provided the entity has taken explicit consent from the consumer. However, in many cases, these consents were collected through offline or unverifiable means, making it extremely difficult to ascertain their validity and genuineness, TRAI said in a statement Monday.. In several instances, consumers report that their mobile numbers have been acquired by the entities for this purpose through misrepresentation, deception, or unauthorised data-sharing practices. TRAI has undertaken several innovative regulatory measures in recent years to curb such practices. These include allowing consumers to register complaints against unregistered telemarketers (UTMs) even without prior DND registration, and initiating large-scale disconnection of telecom resources being misused by the entities for spamming activities. However, verification of consent for commercial communication citing offline consent of consumer remains a formidable challenge. To address the issue, the regulations provide for acquiring consent digitally by the entities and registering them in a secure and interoperable digital consent registry maintained by the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) for easy verification of consents while commercial communication is made to the consumers. However, for the successful operation of this consent registration framework, onboarding of entities sending commercial communications is a necessary requirement. Accordingly, to begin the national roll-out, TRAI has launched a Pilot Project in coordination with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) involving select banks and has issued a Direction on 13th June, 2025, to all the Telecom Service Providers, mandating them to pilot this framework in collaboration with banks. Given the sensitivity of banking transactions and cases of financial frauds through spam calls, the banking sector has been prioritised for the first phase of implementation. This Pilot, running under a Regulatory Sandbox framework, will validate the operational, technical, and regulatory aspects of the enhanced Consent Registration Function (CRF) and lay the foundation for sector-wise scaling of the digital consent ecosystem. TRAI said it remains committed to safeguarding consumer interests and enhancing trust in legitimate commercial communications. The Authority said it will continue to work with sectoral regulators and stakeholders to ensure that the ecosystem evolves towards more secure, transparent, and consumer-centric practices. (ANI)
