ONGC will invest US$736 million in India’s oil reserves
Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) plans to invest 70 billion rupees, equivalent to about US$736 million, in the development of new oil reserves in southern India.
The state-owned oil company will build underground facilities with the capacity to store approximately 13 million barrels of crude oil. ONGC Chairman Arun Kumar Singh indicated that the land needed for the project has already been acquired and that construction will begin soon.
oil storage capacity to respond to potential supply disruptions. The initiative will also support the Indian government's efforts to increase its emergency energy reserves .
India seeks to protect itself from problems in crude oil supply
Moreover, the expansion comes after the war in the Middle East exposed India's vulnerability to disruptions in international supply .
India relies heavily on oil imports to meet its demand; therefore, a disruption in international flows could increase pressure on the country's supply and raise its exposure to changes in energy markets.
In this scenario, having more oil reserves provides additional leeway to cope with periods when imports are delayed or disrupted.
India has 39 million barrels of oil in storage
India currently has around 39 million barrels of crude oil in strategic storage. That amount is roughly equivalent to one week of oil imports.
Therefore, the 13 million barrels projected by ONGC represent a significant increase compared to the current strategic volume. Comparing both figures, the new facility would have a capacity equivalent to approximately one-third of those 39 million barrels.
However, India's capacity remains small compared to China's; the Asian country maintains around 1.2 billion barrels in commercial and strategic reserves.
The difference shows the scale of the challenge India faces as it tries to increase its protection against potential problems in international crude oil markets.
ONGC is evaluating operating oil and gas operations from Dubai or Singapore
Meanwhile, ONGC is also looking to increase its control over its international operations; the company is in talks with foreign firms to establish an operations desk outside of India.
The project would be dedicated to the trading of crude oil, refined fuels and natural gas . With this structure, ONGC seeks to gain greater control over purchases and sales, as well as better manage its exposure to price fluctuations.
According to Singh, Dubai and Singapore are the two locations the company is considering to set up this operation.
ONGC aims to market 50 million tons per year
Furthermore, ONGC's business plans are on a considerable scale; the company intends to manage around 50 million tons of crude oil , petroleum products, and gas annually through this platform.
Thus, the two initiatives showcase different facets of ONGC's strategy. The project in India will increase available physical storage capacity in the face of supply problems, while the international initiative will allow for direct involvement in operations related to the purchase and sale of energy resources.
For India, the increase in reserves is especially important due to its dependence on oil imports. The additional 13 million barrels will provide greater responsiveness to external disruptions, although the gap with China's accumulated reserves will remain significant.
News of additional interest
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