THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

NEW DELHI, JULY 10, 2026

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has given an in-principle approval to develop a 1.75-million-tonne strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) at Mangaluru, marking a significant step towards enhancing India's emergency crude oil storage capacity and reinforcing the nation's long-term energy security.

In a regulatory filing on Friday, the company said the proposed project, along with associated infrastructure, will be executed as the Phase-I expansion of the Mangaluru strategic petroleum reserve. The board has also authorised ONGC to engage with the Central Government on expanding the commercial utilisation of the facility, subject to the necessary regulatory approvals.

While ONGC did not disclose the project's investment outlay or implementation timeline, the expansion is expected to play a crucial role in strengthening India's preparedness against global crude oil supply disruptions and periods of heightened price volatility.

India's Strategic Petroleum Reserve programme was launched to build emergency crude stockpiles that can be tapped during geopolitical crises, supply shortages or sharp fluctuations in international oil prices. These reserves supplement the operational inventories maintained by oil marketing companies and refiners, providing an additional layer of energy security.

Under the programme's first phase, India established underground rock caverns with a combined storage capacity of around 5.33 million tonnes at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, Mangaluru and Padur in Karnataka. These facilities are operated by Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL), a special purpose vehicle under the Oil Industry Development Board.

The Centre has already approved the second phase of the SPR programme, which includes the expansion of the Padur facility and the development of a new strategic crude oil reserve at Chandikhol in Odisha. The latest ONGC decision aligns with the government's broader strategy to significantly expand the country's emergency oil storage infrastructure and bolster energy resilience amid an increasingly uncertain global energy landscape.