ONGC to Drill Well in Bihar

• 26 Mar 2024

Why in News?

Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) plans to drill a well in Bihar to look for oil and gas.

• A commercial discovery will put the state on India's oil map and also open up for exploration the entire Ganga basin stretching from Bihar to Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

Key Points

• The company has acquired 3D seismic data for 300 sq. km for its block in Samastipur and is set to drill two exploratory wells.
  • The first drilling will be carried out in 2024.
  • Besides this, the oil and gas producer also plans to drill an exploratory well in another block in the Ganga basin in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh.
• Data from the first well's drilling will help guide the company's plans for the rest of the exploration block, including drilling of the second well.
  • Both blocks in Samastipur and Ballia were obtained in the fourth Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) round a few years ago.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC)

• It is a Maharatna Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) of the Government of India.
• It was set up in 1995 and is under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
• It is the largest crude oil and natural gas company in India, contributing around 70% to Indian domestic production.

Ganga Basin

• The headwaters of the Ganga called the ‘Bhagirathi’ are fed by the Gangotri Glacier and joined by the Alaknanda at Devprayag in Uttarakhand.
• At Haridwar, Ganga emerges from the mountains to the plains.
• The Ganga is joined by many tributaries from the Himalayas, a few of them being major rivers such as the Yamuna, the Ghaghara, the Gandak, and the Kosi.