With four new offshore blocks obtained off the Tamil Nadu coast ONGC expands its exploration areas in Indian deep-sea basins of the southern region.

The ninth Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) bidding by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) let The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) acquire four offshore blocks that lie near Tamil Nadu's coastline for oil and gas exploration.

The four blocks granted to ONGC cover an area of 32,485.29 sq km that surrounds Chennai and Kanniyakumari Coast and increases company presence in the deep-sea zones of the Cauvery Basin. The company won these blocks by beating out Vedanta Limited through its participation in an international tender launched in January 2024.

The significant victory helps India pursue its national initiative to enhance home-based oil and gas production while limiting the need to import foreign fuels. The successful bid blocks CY-UDWHP-2022/1, CY-UDWHP-2022/2, CY-UDWHP-2022/3 and CY-UDWHP-2023/1 will start conducting seismic surveys with preliminary studies as soon as the regulators provide their approvals.

Public opposition from environmental advocates and organization together with fishing associations and political parties fears major oil and gas exploration projects may damage sea environments and cause job losses.

The growth of ONGC stands as a fundamental move for Indian energy security plans which depends on the oil and gas sector as a leading force behind national economic expansion.