Lok Sabha Question No. 1688 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-08-01
Subject: Domestic Gas Production
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: Shri Abhishek Banerjee

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1688

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 1 st  August 2024

## Domestic Gas Production

## 1688. Shri  Abhishek  Banerjee:

## पेůोिलयम और ÿाक ृ ितक गैस मंýी

## Will the Minister of PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether it is a fact that India gets around eighty per cent of its oil requirements from other countries;
- (b) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
- (c) the steps taken by the Government to boost domestic oil and gas production; and
- (d)  the  details  of  the  measures  implemented  to  increase  natural  gas  consumption  and  the timeline fixed to achieve net-zero status?

## ANSWER

पेůोिलयम और ÿाक ृ ितक गैस मंýालय म¤ राºय मंýी ( ®ी सुरेश गोपी )

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS (SHRI SURESH GOPI)

(a) and  (b):  To  meet  the  consumption  of  petroleum  products  and  the  requirement  of  oil refineries in the country, domestic Oil and Gas companies import more than 85% of their crude oil requirements.

- (c):  The  government  has  been  taking  various  steps  to  boost  domestic  oil  and  gas  production which, inter-alia, 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 (HELP), 2016.
- iv.  Policy for Extension of Production Sharing Contracts, 2016 and 2017.
- v.   Policy for early monetization of Coal Bed Methane 2017.
- vi.  Setting up of National Data Repository, 2017. The National Data Repository (NDR) is now being further upgraded to a cloud-based system for seamless dissemination of Exploration & Production data to global investors.
- vii. Appraisal of Un-appraised areas in Sedimentary Basins under National Seismic Programme, 2017.
- viii. Re-assessment of Hydrocarbon Resources, 2017.
- ix.   Policy framework to streamline the working of Production Sharing Contracts in Pre- NELP and NELP Blocks, 2018.
- x.    Policy framework for extension of Production Sharing Contracts for Discovered Fields and Exploration  Blocks  under  Pre-New  Exploration  Licensing  Policy  (Pre-NELP),  2016  and 2017.
- xi.   Policy to Promote and Incentivize Enhanced Recovery Methods for Oil and Gas, 2018.
- xii. Policy framework for exploration and exploitation of Coal Bed Methane (CBM) from areas under Coal Mining Lease allotted to Coal India Limited (CIL) and its subsidiaries, 2018.
- xiii. Policy Framework for exploration and exploitation of Unconventional Hydrocarbons under Existing  Production  Sharing  Contracts  (PSCs),  Coal  Bed  Methane  (CBM)  Contracts  and Nomination Fields, 2018.
- xiv.  Reforms  in  Hydrocarbon  Exploration  and  Licensing  Policy  for  enhancing  domestic exploration and production of oil and gas, 2019.
- xv.   Natural Gas Marketing Reforms, 2020.
- xvi.  Reforms  in  Model  Revenue  Sharing  Contracts  (RSCs)  for  Blocks  under  Open  Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP), 2023.
- xvii.Lower Royalty Rates, Zero Revenue Share (till Windfall Gain) and no drilling commitment in Phase-I in OALP Blocks under Category II and III to attract bidders.
- xviii.  Release  of  about  1  Million  Sq.  Km.  'No-Go'  area  in  offshore  which  were  blocked  for exploration for decades. In these erstwhile 'No-Go' area, after the release now, so far bids/ expression of interests received for 1,52,325 Sq. Km. area. Two gas discoveries have also been made by ONGC in Mahanadi offshore recently in a block having 94% area in 'No-Go' area. Andaman offshore area has also been opened for exploration and production activities after  a  long  time  post  removal  of  restrictions  imposed  by  defence and  space  agencies  in 2022.
- xix. Till now, 12 hydrocarbon discoveries have been made in blocks awarded under OALP, one already producing gas (0.44 MMSCMD) and condensate (819 BBL/Day) in Gujarat while other discoveries are under appraisal.
- xx.  Government is spending about Rs.7500 Cr. for acquisition  of seismic data in onland and offshore areas and drilling of stratigraphic wells to make quality data of Indian Sedimentary Basins available to bidders.
- xxi. Government has also approved acquisition of additional 2D Seismic data of 20,000 LKM in onland and 30, 000 LKM in offshore beyond Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of India.
- xxii. Production of Coal Bed Methane (CBM) has reached 2 Million Standard Cubic Meters per day and is expected to increase further in coming years. More blocks are being identified for offer in future bid rounds.
- xxiii.  Cumulative  production  from  Discovered  Small  Fields  (DSF)  till  FY  2023-24  are ~5,56,000 bbl Oil and ~139 MMSCM Gas. More fields are being planned for offer in future rounds.

(d): Government has set a target to raise the share of natural gas in primary energy mix to 15% by 2030. Government has taken various measures to increase consumption of natural gas in the country. These, inter-alia, include expansion of National Gas Grid Pipeline, expansion of City Gas  Distribution  (CGD)  network,  setting  up  of  Liquefied  Natural  Gas  (LNG)  Terminals, allocation  of  domestic  gas  to  Compressed  Natural  Gas  (Transport)  /  Piped  Natural  Gas (Domestic) CNG (T)/PNG (D) in no cut category, allowing marketing and pricing freedom with ceiling price to gas  produced from high pressure/high temperature areas, deep water & ultradeep  water,  etc.  The  consumption  of  natural  gas  in  the  country  has  increased  from  160.8 MMSCMD in 2022-23 to 188 MMSCMD in 2023-24. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) imports have also increased from 24,551 MMSCM in 2022-23 to 30,386 MMSCM in 2023-24.

India,  at  the  26 th session  of  the  United  Nations  Framework  Convention  on  Climate  Change (COP 26) in November, 2021, announced its target to achieve net zero by 2070. India's longterm low- carbon development strategy is based on the principles of equity and climate justice and the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities.