New Delhi, India / RankWire.AI / – The Union Cabinet, presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sanctioned a historic national effort on Friday aimed at boosting hydrocarbon discoveries in Indian ocean basins. Official announcements from the Press Information Bureau confirmed that the Cabinet has approved a Rs 84,084 crore offshore oil and gas exploration initiative, known as the Samudra Manthan program. This sector-specific plan will be overseen by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and will be executed through the fiscal years 2030 to 2031. The multi-billion-rupee project is designed to promote deepwater exploration, strengthen energy security, and tap into unexploited oil and natural gas reserves within India’s exclusive economic zone.
Funding has been distributed across four main pillars to revolutionize the upstream petroleum industry. As per official disclosures from the Prime Minister’s Office, the government has allocated 28,534 crore rupees specifically for offshore seismic data collection, processing, and high-resolution analysis. This allocation includes 12,000 crore rupees for basin-wide two-dimensional seismic surveys, 12,534 crore rupees for three-dimensional seismic mapping, and 4,000 crore rupees to upgrade the National Data Repository with artificial intelligence tools. These resources aim to comprehensively map unexplored frontier basins and previously restricted maritime zones along India’s eastern and western coastlines.
The largest portion of the approved budget, amounting to 55,200 crore rupees, is dedicated to direct exploration activities and infrastructure development. The government has earmarked 43,200 crore rupees to facilitate drilling of 60 deepwater and ultra-deepwater exploration wells across targeted offshore blocks. Under a risk-sharing scheme, public financial backing will cover up to 50 percent of qualified drilling costs, with a maximum of 675 crore rupees per well. An additional 10,000 crore rupees is assigned for offshore production and evacuation infrastructure, while 2,000 crore rupees will fund the establishment of specialized manufacturing zones for petroleum equipment and technical services.
Cabinet Grants Rs 84,084 Crore for Offshore Hydrocarbon Exploration Initiative
Official projections indicate that this Rs 84,084 crore offshore exploration program aims to bring about significant reserve growth over the next ten years. The government anticipates adding over 600 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent in hydrocarbon reserves through targeted exploration efforts. The scheme intends to increase annual domestic oil and gas production from 62 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent to 80 million metric tonnes, thereby expanding India’s hydrocarbon resource base from 1.6 billion to 2.2 billion tonnes of oil equivalent. This boost in domestic energy output is expected to reduce crude oil imports by nearly 1 lakh crore rupees each year.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted during a press conference in New Delhi that the national program aims to mitigate significant geopolitical risks threatening international crude oil supply lines. With India’s dependence on crude oil imports reaching 88.7 percent in fiscal year 2025 to 2026, the government designed Samudra Manthan to foster long-term energy independence. High-stakes exploratory drilling in deepwater basins such as Krishna-Godavari, Cauvery, Mahanadi, and the Andaman offshore region requires substantial capital, estimated between 100 million and 250 million dollars per well. Public risk-sharing efforts are intended to encourage private and state-owned upstream operators to invest long-term capital into challenging offshore geological formations.
Up to 675 Crore Rupees Incentive Per Deepwater Well
Development of offshore infrastructure is a central element of the scheme, designed to make smaller hydrocarbon discoveries more commercially viable. By deploying shared processing facilities, subsea pipelines, and evacuation systems, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas aims to lower the costs associated with commercial field development. The scheme also allocates 350 crore rupees for digital project management, monitoring, workforce training, and international technical collaboration. These efforts are intended to develop a robust industrial ecosystem capable of supporting advanced offshore engineering, underwater robotics, and deepwater extraction technologies.
The launch of Samudra Manthan builds on a decade of policy reforms in upstream oil, including open acreage licensing and integrated contractual frameworks. By extending financial support through 2031, the government seeks to cultivate long-term industrial partnerships, create high-skilled employment opportunities, and promote domestic manufacturing under the Make in India initiative. As offshore surveys and deepwater drilling projects proceed, this scheme paves the way toward reducing import reliance, strengthening economic resilience, and securing India’s long-term energy independence.