THEBUSINESSBYTES
BUREAU
NEW DELHI, JULY 31,
2026
The Union Cabinet on Friday approved
the ambitious 'Samudra Manthan' (National Offshore Exploration Scheme) with an
outlay of Rs 84,084 crore to be implemented till FY 2030-31, in a major push to
strengthen India's energy security, boost domestic oil and gas production, and
accelerate offshore exploration through advanced technology and world-class
infrastructure.
The Central Sector Scheme of the
Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, approved by the Union Cabinet chaired by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeks to unlock India's vast offshore energy
resources while promoting indigenous manufacturing, technological innovation and
long-term economic growth.
According to the government, the Scheme
translates the Prime Minister's vision, articulated from the Red Fort on
Independence Day 2025, of a modern-day Samudra Manthan to unlock India's vast
offshore energy potential. It marks a landmark step towards strengthening
India's energy security, accelerating domestic exploration and production,
promoting technological leadership, and advancing the vision of Viksit Bharat.
The scheme envisages a comprehensive
set of interventions across the offshore exploration value chain. These include
large-scale acquisition, processing and interpretation of high-quality seismic
data, accelerated deepwater and ultra-deepwater exploratory drilling,
scientific drilling in frontier basins, development of common offshore
production and evacuation infrastructure, and establishment of an integrated
Oil & Gas Manufacturing and Services Zone.
It also provides for dedicated
investments in digital programme management, capacity building, technology
adoption, stakeholder engagement and international outreach, creating an
integrated ecosystem aimed at accelerating offshore exploration and production
across the country.
The government expects Samudra Manthan
to catalyse reserve accretion of over 600 Million Metric Tons of Oil Equivalent
(MMTOE), significantly enhance offshore exploration activity, and increase
domestic crude oil and natural gas production.
Besides improving India's long-term
energy security, the scheme is projected to generate large-scale employment,
strengthen indigenous manufacturing under the Make in India and Atmanirbhar
Bharat initiatives, and foster a globally competitive ecosystem for offshore
technologies and services.
The initiative is also expected to
stimulate substantial investments across the exploration and production value
chain, creating long-term opportunities for industry, innovation and economic
growth.
The government said that as India
progresses towards becoming a developed nation, Samudra Manthan represents a
transformational national initiative that will unlock the country's offshore
energy resources, strengthen long-term energy security, deepen technological
capabilities, and create enduring value for the economy and future generations.
Highlighting the backdrop to the initiative, the government said it had undertaken transformative reforms across the upstream sector over the past decade, including opening almost the entire offshore acreage for exploration, modernising the legislative and contractual framework, and strengthening the National Data Repository.
Building on these reforms, it said, Samudra Manthan will usher in a new era of accelerated offshore exploration through strategic public investment, cutting-edge technologies and world-class infrastructure.
