Question : Investments in Oil and Gas

(a) whether the Government proposes to increase investments in domestic production of oil and gas and if so, the details thereof along with the steps taken by the Government in this regard;
(b) whether all potential oil/ hydrocarbon fields have been explored for production in the country during the last five years and the current year and if so, the details thereof;
(c) the details of new oil/hydrocarbon fields discovered and oil, gas and other petroleum products produced from the said fields, State/project/company-wise; and
(d) whether alternatives to hydrocarbon based imported fuel is being planned by the Government for meeting the long term energy requirements of the country and if so, the details thereof?

MINISTER OF PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
(SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)
(a) The policy initiatives taken by the Government to increase investments in domestic production of oil and gas include:-
i. Policy for Relaxations, Extensions and Clarifications under Production Sharing Contract (PSC) regime for early monetization of hydrocarbon discoveries, 2014.
ii. Discovered Small Field Policy, 2015.
iii. Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy, 2016.
iv. Policy for Extension of Production Sharing Contracts, 2016 and 2017.
v. Policy for early monetization of Coal Bed Methane.
vi. Setting up of National Data Repository, 2017.
vii. Appraisal of Unappraised areas in Sedimentary Basins.
viii. Re-assessment of Hydrocarbon Resources.
ix. Policy framework to streamline the working of Production Sharing Contracts in Pre-NELP and NELP Blocks, 2018.
x. Policy to Promote and Incentivize Enhanced Recovery Methods for Oil and Gas, 2018.
Page 2 of 2
xi. Policy framework for exploration and exploitation of Unconventional Hydrocarbons under existing Production Sharing Contracts, Coal Bed Methane contracts and Nomination fields, 2018.
(b) The conventional hydrocarbon prognosticated resources in 26 sedimentary basins including offshore areas of the country are of the order of 41.87 Billion Metric Tonnes of O+OEG (oil and oil equivalent of gas). In-place hydrocarbon volume of 10.68 Billion Metric Tonnes of oil and oil equivalent gas (O+OEG) has been established through exploration as on 1st April, 2018. About 74 % of resources are under “yet to find category”.
(c) During the last five years i.e. from 2013-14 to 2017-18 and the current year 2018-19, Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has made 95 new oil and gas discoveries, while Oil India Limited (OIL) and Private companies have made 41 and 34 new oil and gas discoveries respectively.
(d) The Government, through Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), is implementing Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme and Biodiesel Programme under which ethanol is being blended upto 10 percent with petrol and biodiesel is being blended upto 7 percent with diesel. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas is promoting use of Compressed Bio Gas (CBG).
******