India’s Hydrocarbon Outlook 2024 12 A Report on Exploration & Production Activities A Pioneering Journey: The Story of Oil Exploration in India 1 Early Discoveries and Attempts (1828-1889) The story of India’s oil exploration journey began in the 19th century, specifically in the northeastern corner of the country. Members of the Geological Survey of India (GSI), C.A. Bruce (1828) and H.B. Medicott (1865), stumbled upon oil seepages while searching for coal in Upper Assam. Inspired by Edwin L. Drake’s drilling of the world’s first oil well in Pennsylvania, USA (1859), attempts at oil exploration began in Assam. The initial hand-dug well by Stewart & Company in 1866 near Jeypore proved unsuccessful. However, the following year, Assam’s first mechanically drilled well struck oil at just 118 feet, marking a significant milestone in oil exploration in India. Shifting Landscape and New Players (18891937) The Assam Railways and Trading Company (AR&T Co. Ltd.) took a crucial step in 1889 by digging a well at the Digboi field. This well yielded commercially viable oil The story of India’s oil exploration journey began in the 19th century, specifically in the northeastern corner of the country.
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