State-run Oil And Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has expanded its partnership with BP to revive production from ageing offshore oil and gas fields, targeting a more than 24% increase in combined oil and oil-equivalent gas output from western offshore assets over the next decade amid rising import dependence and energy demand.
ONGC on Monday said BP Exploration Services India Ltd, a wholly-owned step-down subsidiary of BP Plc, was selected through an international competitive bidding process as Technical Services Provider (TSP) for western offshore fields in the Mumbai Offshore Basin, excluding the flagship Mumbai High field.
The move assumes significance at a time when India’s crude import dependence remains above 88%, increasing pressure on domestic upstream companies to enhance recovery from mature fields and arrest production decline.
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24% Hydrocarbon Surge
According to ONGC, the engagement could increase crude oil production from western offshore fields by about 10.8% during the 10-year contract period to 51.26 million metric tonnes (MMT) from a baseline of 46.25 MMT. Natural gas production is projected to rise 31.5% to 108.69 billion cubic metres (BCM) from 82.68 BCM.
Combined oil and oil-equivalent gas production from the western offshore fields is expected to rise around 24.1% to 159.96 million tonnes of oil equivalent (MMTOE) from 128.93 MMTOE during the contract period. The increase in production is expected to begin from FY27, with full-scale impact visible from FY30.
Mumbai High Blueprint
ONGC said Mumbai High, India’s largest producing oil field, currently accounts for around 38% of total western offshore oil and oil-equivalent gas production. The company had engaged BP Exploration Alpha Ltd for Mumbai High in January 2025.
“Preliminary production data during the initial months of TSP implementation indicate moderation of the earlier decline trajectory and stabilisation of production,” ONGC said.
“This has been achieved through focused well, reservoir and facility management (WRFM) initiatives, optimisation of existing wells, enhanced surveillance, and prioritised facility de-bottlenecking,” it added.
Building on this experience, ONGC decided to engage a TSP for the broader western offshore region excluding Mumbai High.
“While ONGC continues to unlock new hydrocarbon resources through greenfield projects, enhancing recovery from mature fields remains equally important to raising domestic production,” the company said.
ONGC said it had invited all major international oil companies to participate in the tender process for enhancing production from mature offshore fields through “global technology, expertise, and best-in-class operational and management practices.”
“After the bid evaluation process, M/s BP Exploration Services India Limited (BPXS), UK, a wholly-owned step-down subsidiary of BP Plc, UK, has been selected as TSP,” the company said.
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“The TSP will review the field performance & identify improvements in reservoir, facilities and wells to enhance production from Western Offshore fields,” it added.
Separately, BP confirmed the selection and said: “We are grateful to ONGC for once again reaffirming their trust in us and look forward to supporting an enhanced production from these fields.”
ONGC said the Mumbai Offshore Basin remains its most prolific hydrocarbon-producing basin comprising 43 blocks, including Mumbai High and the Bassein gas field, with several assets under production for over four decades.
“With this, ONGC aims to realise the enhanced potential of the entire Western Offshore fields… by leveraging cutting-edge technologies and global best practices, securing its future contribution to India’s energy landscape,” the company said.
TOPICSONGCThis article was first uploaded on May twenty-five, twenty twenty-six, at fifty-seven minutes past six in the evening.