India’s Hydrocarbon Outlook 2024 16 A Report on Exploration & Production Activities conducted under NELP, resulting in the signing of production sharing contracts for 254 exploration blocks. This period also witnessed the commercial opening of two major basins: Rajasthan and Krishna-Godavari. A Shift Towards Revenue Sharing and Renewed Global Interest NELP successfully opened the Indian E&P sector to private and foreign players. However, ongoing investor interactions highlighted the need for further policy reforms, particularly regarding Production Sharing Contracts. Recognizing these concerns, the government made a significant shift towards Revenue Sharing Contracts with the introduction of the Discovered Small Field Policy (DSF, 2015) and the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP, 2016). Recent policy interventions and project facilitation efforts have generated renewed global interest in the Indian oil and gas industry. The participation of foreign companies in the already held DSF and Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) bidding rounds is a testament to this positive development. The Road Ahead: Big Discoveries and Unveiling Subsurface Potential With a vast scope of activities and the government’s continued focus on development, the Indian oil and gas sector holds immense promise for future discoveries. Recent resource reassessment studies and expert opinions on new plays and deepwater exploration suggest a definitive push towards revealing previously unknown subsurface resources and creating a more realistic picture of India’s hydrocarbon potential. The Indian E&P sector stands poised for a significant leap forward in the years to come. 1.1 Formation of Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) During early nineties, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India had under consideration, the need to have an appropriate agency to regulate and oversee the upstream activities in the petroleum and natural gas sector and advise the Government in these areas. The Dasgupta committee, which had reviewed the management of the Bombay High reservoir, had recommended the creation of an autonomous conservation board to oversee and review that oilfield development which conforms to sound reservoir engineering practices in line with national interests. Subsequently, the Kaul committee, which examined ONGC’s organizational structure, also recommended for establishment of an independent regulatory body called the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons. Moreover, the upstream petroleum sector was largely a monopoly of public sector companies till then and sector at that time was being increasingly opened to new operating companies in the private and joint sectors. Thus, a need was felt to establish an agency that could effectively supervise the activities of all these companies in the national interest. Taking all the above into consideration, Government of India, decided to set up a Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. DGH was set up through a Government Resolution No. O-20013/2/92/ONG-III dated 8th April 1993. DGH-Objective To promote sound management of the Indian Petroleum and Natural Gas resources having a balanced regard for the environment, safety, technological and economic aspects of the petroleum activity.
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