The government launched the Open Acreage Licence Policy (OALP X), the tenth round of bidding for the exploration and production (E&P) of oil and gas assets. The largest round, which was announced during the India Energy Week summit in New Delhi, offers 25 blocks, including 19 offshore, spanning 1.91 lakh sq km across 13 sedimentary basins. This is in contrast to the 1.36 lakh sq km of land that was made available during the previous OALP IX cycle. In the nine prior rounds, the government has offered acreages totaling 3.78 lakh sq km.
In light of the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill, 2024’s presentation in Parliament, India is eager to draw in international offers now. The Lok Sabha must approve the bill, which was approved by the Rajya Sabha during the most recent session of Parliament. It permits international arbitration, establishes a new dispute resolution process for the E&P industry, and clarifies the granting and extension of petroleum leases independently from mining leases. More significantly, it streamlines approval procedures and establishes a more straightforward business regime—two things that multinational giants like Chevron, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies had previously noted as difficult.
The most recent round has a lot riding on it. India’s national oil output in 2023–24 was 29.4 million tonnes, less than the 31.95 million tonnes produced in 1999–2000, despite nine OALP sessions. Since 2011, crude production has stalled, averaging between 30 and 35 million metric tons annually due to the aging of oil fields like Bombay High and the lack of success in finding significant new reserves. Limited reserves, aging infrastructure, and high exploration costs are just a few of the enduring issues that both domestic and international industry players have brought to light.
India’s 26 sedimentary basins make up its estimated 3.36 million square kilometers of sedimentary land. The land area is 1.63 million square kilometers, the shallow offshore area is 0.41 million square kilometers up to 400 meters from the coast, and the deepwater area is 1.32 million square kilometers beyond 400 meters. Roughly 10% of these sedimentary basins are currently being explored. India permits upstream businesses to reserve land for oil and gas exploration under the OALP. The regions that have been designated are then put up for auction after exploration companies have the opportunity to submit expressions of interest for any area throughout the year. These expressions are gathered three times a year.
The Center projects that India’s 3.36 million square kilometer sedimentary basin contains 1,138.6 billion cubic meters of viable natural gas reserves and 651.8 million metric tonnes of recoverable crude oil reserves. Approximately 10% of this region is currently being explored, with intentions to raise that percentage to 16% by the end of 2024. Now, 2025 has been added to this goal.