India’s $100 billion drilling push targets deepwater and frontier oil resources
(Bloomberg) – India’s efforts to expand oil drilling to previously restricted areas could help attract investments worth $100 billion by the end of the decade, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday.
Explorers can expect steady demand, as India plans to expand its refining capacity to 6 MMbpd, adding 1 million by the end of the decade, Modi said in a video speech at the India Energy Week conference.
Greater domestic production could dent India’s oil imports, which currently remain the main focus of oil traders’ attention. That’s because while India’s oil output in December averaged 550,000 bpd, equivalent to that of OPEC members Congo and Gabon combined, it still makes up a fraction of the country’s total consumption.
Domestic production has lagged for decades, leaving India reliant on imports to meet 90% of its oil demand and half of its gas needs. The two fuels alone accounted for 17% of the total goods shipped from overseas in December, a huge drain on the country’s foreign exchange.
To stem a crisis expected to worsen as fuel demand increases, India has earmarked nearly 1 million square kilometers of previously ring-fenced area for exploration, in addition to the current 170 blocks already open to drilling.
Last year in August, Modi launched the National Deepwater Exploration Mission, which seeks to unlock 600-1,200 million tons of oil and gas reserves through 40 new wildcat wells. The aim of the mission is to double reserves by 2032, triple output by 2047 and ultimately slash import dependency by 88%.
