Lok Sabha Question No. 939 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-02-05
Subject: New Oil and Gas Exploration Blocks
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: Shri Bidyut Baran Mahato, Dr. Hemang Joshi, Shri Jashubhai Bhilubhai Rathva, Shri Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal, Smt. Shobhanaben Mahendrasinh Baraiya, Smt. Kamlesh Jangde, Shri Praveen Patel, Shri Jugal Kishore, Shri Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri, Shri Lumbaram Choudhary, Shri Rajkumar Chahar, Dr. Manna Lal Rawat, Shri Janardan Mishra, Shri Khagen Murmu, Smt. Aparajita Sarangi, Shri Dineshbhai Makwana

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 939

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 05 th  February, 2026

## New Oil and Gas Exploration Blocks

939.  Shri Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal:

Shri Jashubhai Bhilubhai Rathva:

Smt. Shobhanaben Mahendrasinh Baraiya:

Shri Dineshbhai Makwana:

Dr. Manna Lal Rawat:

Smt. Kamlesh Jangde:

Shri Lumbaram Choudhary:

Shri Bidyut Baran Mahato:

Shri Praveen Patel:

Smt. Aparajita Sarangi:

Shri Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri:

Shri Jugal Kishore:

Dr. Hemang Joshi:

Shri Janardan Mishra:

Shri Khagen Murmu:

Shri Rajkumar Chahar:

## पेट Ō ोिलयम और Ůाक ृ ितक गैस मंũी

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

- (a) the number of new oil and gas exploration blocks awarded or made operational during the last three years in the country, State/UT-wise, especially in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir;
- (b) the extent to which domestic production contributes towards reducing import dependence;
- (c) the manner in which domestic crude oil and natural gas production levels have changed during this period;
- (d)  whether  ease-of-doing-business  reforms  have  improved  investment  response  in  the upstream sectors, if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the progress made in deepwater and unconventional hydrocarbon exploration

## ANSWER

## पेट Ō ोिलयम और Ůाक ृ ितक गैस मंũालय मŐ राǛ मंũी (ŵी सुरेश गोपी)

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

- (a):    Government have launched Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) in 2016. Under this policy, Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) was started. During the last three years, 38 exploration blocks under OALP bid Round VIII and IX covering 1,72,912.95 Square Kilometer in the country have been awarded. List of blocks awarded in offshore areas, States and UTs is placed as Annexure I.

None  of  the  blocks  awarded  under  these  rounds  fall  within  the  territorial  jurisdiction  of  the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

- (b) & (c): For the Financial Year 2024-25, total import of crude oil was 243 Million Metric Tonne (MMT). The total domestic production of oil was 28.7 MMT and that of gas was 36.1 Billion  Cubic  Meter  (BCM).  The  entire  quantum  of  crude  oil  and  natural  gas  produced domestically contributes towards reducing import dependence. The year-wise domestic crude oil and natural gas production during the last three years is as follows:

| FY              |   2022-23 |   2023-24 |   2024-25 |
|-----------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|
| Crude Oil (MMT) |      29.2 |      29.4 |      28.7 |
| Gas (BCM)       |      34.5 |      36.4 |      36.1 |

Source: Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH)

(d):    Government  has  taken  various  policy  decisions  towards  ease  of  doing  business  which helped in boosting  domestic  crude oil  and  natural  gas  production  and  reduce  dependency  on import of oil and gas which, inter alia, include:

- i.  Policy  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 PSCs, 2016 and 2017;
- v. Policy for early monetization of Coal Bed Methane, 2017;
- vi. Setting up of National Data Repository, 2017;
- vii. Approval  of  Un-appraised  areas  in  Sedimentary  Basins  under  National  Seismic Programme, 2017;
- viii. Policy to Promote/Incentivize Enhanced Recovery Methods of Oil/Gas 2018;
- ix. Policy for exploration and exploitation of Unconventional Hydrocarbons under Existing Fields, 2018;
- x. Lower  Royalty  Rates,  Zero  Revenue  Share  (till Windfall  Gain)  and  no  drilling commitment in Phase-I in OALP Blocks under Category II and III basins to attract bidders, 2019;
- xi. Natural Gas Marketing Reforms, 2020;
- xii. Release of about 1 Million Sq. Km. (SKM) 'No-Go' area in offshore which were earlier blocked for exploration for decades, 2022;
- xiii. Revised Domestic Price Guidelines were issued in 2023;
- xiv. Amendments in the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Act, 1948 to promote ease of doing business, contractual stability, operational efficiency and faster dispute resolution, 2025;
- xv.  Notification of Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules, 2025.
16. (e): Government have undertaken various policy measures for deep-water and unconventional Hydrocarbon exploration which inter-alia include:
17. (i)  Announcement  of  National  Deepwater  Exploration  Mission  under  Samudra  Manthan with an objective to augment hydrocarbon resources and reserves and to enable their timely conversion into production.

(ii)  Appraisal  of  Un-appraised  areas  in  Sedimentary  Basins  under  National  Seismic Programme, 2017. (iii)    Release  of  about  1  Million  Sq.  Km.  (SKM)  'No-Go'  area  in  offshore  which  were blocked for exploration for decades in 2022. (iv) Government have 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. (v)  Hydrocarbon  Resource  Assessment  Study  (HRAS  2025)  has  been  launched  on 17.07.2025 for resource assessment across all Indian sedimentary basins. (vi) As on date, 22 deep water and ultra-deep water exploration blocks have been awarded under  various  Open  Acreages  Licensing  Policy  (OALP)  Bid  Rounds.  In  these  blocks,  8 exploratory wells have been drilled in the Mahanadi, Cauvery, Krishna-Godavari (KG) and Andaman basins. As a result, 3  hydrocarbon discoveries  have  been  notified in Mahanadi and Cauvery basins. (vii) National Gas Hydrate Programme (NGHP) had been launched by the Government for exploration  of  Gas  Hydrate  in  India.  Till  date,  Two  major  expedition  namely  NGHP-01 (2006) and NGHP-02 (2015) have been completed.

*******

Annexure referred to in reply to part (a) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 939 to be answered on 05.02.2026 regarding 'New Oil and Gas Exploration Blocks'.

## Details of blocks awarded under OALP Bid Round VIII and IX

|   Sr No | Block Name      | OALP Bid Round   | State     |
|---------|-----------------|------------------|-----------|
|       1 | AS-ONHP-2022/1  | VIII             | Assam     |
|       2 | CB-ONHP-2022/1  | VIII             | Gujarat   |
|       3 | KG-UDWHP-2022/1 | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|       4 | MB-OSHP-2022/1  | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|       5 | GK-OSHP-2022/1  | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|       6 | GS-DWHP-2022/1  | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|       7 | MN-UDWHP-2022/1 | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|       8 | BP-OSHP-2022/1  | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|       9 | KK-DWHP-2022/1  | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|      10 | KK-OSHP-2022/1  | VIII             | OFFSHORE  |
|      11 | CY-UDWHP-2022/1 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      12 | CY-UDWHP-2022/2 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      13 | CY-UDWHP-2022/3 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      14 | CB-ONHP-2022/2  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      15 | GS-OSHP-2022/1  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      16 | GS-OSHP-2022/2  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      17 | AS-ONHP-2022/2  | IX               | Meghalaya |
|      18 | AS-ONHP-2022/3  | IX               | Meghalaya |
|      19 | GK-OSHP-2023/1  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      20 | GS-ONHP-2023/1  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      21 | CY-UDWHP-2023/1 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      22 | GS-UDWHP-2023/1 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      23 | GS-UDWHP-2023/2 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      24 | GS-OSHP-2023/1  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      25 | MB-OSHP-2023/1  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      26 | CB-OSHP-2023/1  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      27 | MB-OSHP-2023/2  | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      28 | GS-ONHP-2023/2  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      29 | GS-ONHP-2023/3  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      30 | CB-OSHP-2023/2  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      31 | CB-ONHP-2023/1  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      32 | CB-ONHP-2023/2  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      33 | CB-ONHP-2023/3  | IX               | Gujarat   |
|      34 | MN-UDWHP-2023/1 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      35 | MN-UDWHP-2023/2 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      36 | KG-UDWHP-2023/1 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      37 | KG-UDWHP-2023/2 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |
|      38 | MN-UDWHP-2023/3 | IX               | OFFSHORE  |