'Guyana dug 46 dry wells before oil was found in 47th': Hardeep Puri says India could be steps away from massive discovery
&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "'Guyana dug 46 dry wells before oil was found in 47th': Hardeep Puri says India could be steps away from massive discovery")
'Guyana dug 46 dry wells before oil was found in 47th': Hardeep Puri says India could be steps away from massive discovery Photograph: (Credit: PTI)
India may be a step away from a massive discovery, hints Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. Drawing parallels to the South American nation Guyana, the minister said ‘46 dry wells were drilled before oil was found in the 47th’.
India may be a step away from a massive discovery, hints Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. Drawing parallels to the South American nation Guyana, the minister said ‘46 dry wells were drilled before oil was found in the 47th’. He said this about the early offshore explorations in the Andaman, which are staring at the possible discovery of oil reserves.
“Globally, in Guyana, 46 dry wells were drilled before oil was found in the 47th. We believe India holds the potential of several Guyanas, particularly in the Indian Ocean region. We are looking at the possibility, thanks to this additional E&P, of finding a Guyana,” Puri said.
He continued, “In 2024–25, we’ve seen green shoots - Surya Mani (Open Acreage Licensing Policy Round 6), dug at 2,323 metres with an estimated potential of 4 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent; Neel Mani (OALP Round 5), dug at 1,117 metres, 1.2 million metric tonnes; in 2025–26, another well from OALP Round 3 at 2,865 metres shows both oil and gas; in 2023–24, under OALP 3, Moti well at 2,957 metres revealed around 5 million metric tonnes of oil and gas equivalent.”
“Today, we welcome technical expertise from global partners. India imports 80% of its oil and 50% of its natural gas. Even a 5-billion-barrel discovery would be a game-changer. While it’s premature to speculate exact quantities, we do have green shoots and multiple discoveries pointing in the right direction. We must not misinterpret exploratory drilling as confirmed discoveries. But based on the data—2.5 pages of discovery listings—we’re seeing promising signs. As we drill deeper, the full potential will become clearer,” he added.
The Union Minister highlighted that India is currently drilling four wells at depths of 5,000 metres by ONGC and Oil India Limited. And clearing doubts on why wasn’t this done before, he pointed at the high costs, corporate reluctance due to quarterly earnings pressure.