26-Jul-2022: ONGC to make Green Hydrogen; inks MoU with India’s leading renewable energy Company Greenko Zero C
Energy major Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with M/s Greenko ZeroC Private Limited (Greenko), to jointly pursue opportunities in Renewables, Green Hydrogen, Green Ammonia and other derivatives of green hydrogen.
The MoU, valid for two years, was inked in New Delhi by ONGC Director Onshore Shri Anurag Sharma and Greenko CEO & Managing Director Shri Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty, in the presence of Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas & Housing and Urban Affairs Shri Hardeep Singh Puri. Secretary (MoP&NG) Shri Pankaj Jain, ONGC CMD Dr. Alka Mittal along with ONGC Directors, other senior officials from MoP&NG , ONGC and Greenko were also present. Greenko is one of India’s leading renewable energy Companies.
This MoU is in line with the National Hydrogen Mission launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister in making India a global green hydrogen hub. The activities envisaged under this MoU will contribute towards India’s target of producing of 5 million tonnes of Green hydrogen per annum by 2030.
This MoU will also act as a stepping stone for ONGC to achieve renewable energy targets as per its Energy Strategy 2040. As the share of renewables in the energy mix is rising driven by cost competitiveness, climate change awareness and strong regulatory push, ONGC aims to meet its objectives such as de-risking of portfolio against long term disruptions and reducing carbon footprint by moving into renewables space.
23-Jun-2022: ONGC Videsh announces new discovery in Colombia
ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL), the wholly owned subsidiary and overseas arm of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC), the National Oil Company of India, has made an oil discovery in the recently drilled well, Urraca-IX, in CPO-5 block, Llanos Basin, Colombia. Well, Urraca-1X was spudded on 20th April 2022 and drilled to target depth (TD) of 10956 ft., encountering 17 ft thick oil-bearing sands at a depth from 10201ft -10218 ft. During initial testing with Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP), fluid flowed @ approx. 600 bbl./day with around 40-50% W/C and oil of 16oAPI. Oil discovery in the Lower Mirador play in this well opens up new areas for further exploration in the northern part of the block.
ONGC Videsh has earlier discovered commercial oil in the Lower Sand pay in Mariposa and Indico fields in the block in 2017 and 2018 respectively, which are currently commercially producing @ 20,000 bbl oil per day.
Block CPO-5 was awarded to ONGC Videsh Limited in the 2008 bid round of Colombia. ONGC Videsh holds 70% participating interest (PI) in the block along with operatorship, remaining 30% is held by partner Geopark. ONGC Videsh has a significant presence in oil & gas sector in Colombia, with three other exploratory blocks in the country and joint ownership of the oil producing company Mansarovar Energy Colombia Ltd (MECL). Oil discovery in a new play in the block with the well Urraca-1X, reiterates the technical and operational prowess of ONGC Videsh and adds one more feather in its cap towards the extensive Exploration and Drilling campaign in Colombia.
23-May-2022: ONGC first Indian Exploration & Production company to trade domestic gas on Indian Gas Exchange
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC) has become the first Exploration and Production (E&P) company in India to trade domestic gas on Indian Gas Exchange. The first online trade was made on 23 May 2022 by ONGC Director (Onshore) In-charge Marketing Anurag Sharma on India’s first automated national level Gas Exchange, IGX. The gas traded is from ONGC Krishna Godavari 98/2 block.
After the deregulation in gas pricing ecosystem in 2000-21, ONGC has prepared itself to reap the benefits. The quantity sold by ONGC through the Gas Exchange will be enhanced slowly.
27-Apr-2022: ONGC inks MoU with Norway’s Equinor to collaborate on E&P, clean energy
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Equinor ASA, the Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company. The MoU was inked on 26 April 2022 in New Delhi for collaboration and partnership in areas of upstream Exploration & Production, midstream, downstream and Clean energy options, including Carbon Capture Utilization & Sequestration (CCUS). Equinor is the leading operator on the Norwegian continental shelf, present in around 30 countries worldwide.
The MoU was signed during the visit of a high-level delegation of Norway to India. Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Norwegian Foreign Minister Ms. Anniken Huitfeldt, ONGC CMD Dr Alka Mittal and Executive Vice President of Equinor Ms. Irene Rummelhoff were present on the occasion.
As per the agreement, both ONGC and Equinor will collaborate with each other in the field of upstream oil and gas, midstream, marketing and trading, besides exploring further options in low carbon fuel, renewables, Carbon Capture Storage (CCS) as well as Carbon Capture Utilization and Sequestration (CCUS) opportunities in India.
The MoU is valid for two years under which both companies have agreed to work together in the areas identified.
30-Sep-2021: ONGC Videsh begins its exploratory drilling campaign in Bangladesh
ONGC Videsh Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), the National Oil Company of India, has spudded its first well Kanchan#1 in Block SS04, Bangladesh, on 29th September 2021 at Maheshkhali Island. This exploratory well is planned to be drilled to a depth of 4200 m and will be targeting two prospective formations. This well marks the beginning of exploratory drilling in Bangladesh by ONGC Videsh and will be followed by drilling at two more exploratory locations.
ONGC Videsh Ltd., in consortium with Oil India Ltd. (OIL), was awarded two shallow offshore Blocks SS-04 and SS-09 in Bangladesh during the Bid Round of 2012. The Production Sharing Contract (PSC) was signed between ONGC Videsh, OIL and Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration & Production Company Limited (BAPEX) in February, 2014. ONGC Videsh, with Participating Interest (PI) of 45%, is the Operator with OIL (45% PI) and BAPEX (10% PI) as the other partners. BAPEX is being carried equally by ONGC Videsh and OIL up to commercial discovery stage.
All pre-drilling activities were completed with the rig being on location in late 2019 and with spudding scheduled for March 2020. However, the drilling had to be deferred due to COVID-19 pandemic. After the easing of restrictions and resolving the issues owing to deferment of initial plans, in September 2021, the drilling of well has commenced on 29th September 2021.
18-Jan-2021: Shri Dharmendra Pradhan flags off two welfare projects of ONGC at Betul in MP
In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to increase the use of renewable energy and making India Atmanirbhar, two projects supported by Energy Maharatna ONGC for the welfare of people in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh were launched by Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel Dharmendra Pradhan today. The Minister laid the foundation stone of a hostel-cum-training facility for farmers at Bharat Bharati Shiksha Samiti. He also launched the distribution of Solar Chulhas to poor households in Betul, which is being developed as a solar village.
ONGC has got solar chulhas designed and developed through IIT Bombay, at an investment of around ninety lakh rupees. The Minister distributed 86 Solar PV Cook-Stove to poor households in the district: 74 were distributed to households of Bacha Gram Panchayat in Ghodadongri Tehsil of Baitul District, 12 in Jamthi village school. All the beneficiaries belonged to the poor and underprivileged section of the society.
The two-floor (G+1) hostel-cum-training facility, being built at an investment of around three crore rupees, will be used to train poor farmers in organic farming. The structure is being built on a 3.45-acre land in the campus of Bharat Bharati Siksha Samiti. Around 15,000 to 20,000 poor farmers will benefit from this ONGC welfare project. The Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Steel Dharmendra Pradhan laid the foundation stone of this facility.
20-Jul-2022: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh says, 10 (Ten) in-orbit operational communication satellites have been transferred from Government of India to M/s. New Space India Ltd (NSIL), a CPSE under Department of Space
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh said, 10 (Ten) in-orbit operational communication satellites have been transferred from Government of India to M/s. New Space India Ltd (NSIL), a CPSE under Department of Space.
In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today, Dr Jitendra Singh said, communication satellites viz. GSAT-8, GSAT-10, GSAT-12R (CMS-01), GSAT-14, GSAT-15, GSAT-16, GSAT-17, GSAT-18, GSAT-30 and GSAT-31 have been transferred at a written down value of Rs 4697.60 crores against issue of equity to Government of India, with 01.04.2021 as the effective date of transfer.
The Board of NSIL is authorized to price the transponder capacity as per the global trends. NSIL shall carry out the activities related to offering and allocation of capacity, as per the guidelines to be adopted by its Board. The transfer of operational satellites is part of the Space Sector reforms, aimed at strengthening the role of NSIL in order to enhance the nation’s share in global space economy.
The Minister also informed that the Government has taken several steps to increase India’s share in global space market, through the reforms undertaken in 2020, which seek to augment the space sector in the country with greater participation of Non-Governmental Entities (NGEs).
The Indian National Space Promotion & Authorization Centre [IN-SPACe] has been created as a single window agency to promote, handhold and authorize the activities of NGEs in the sector, thus providing them with a level playing field.
As a part of these reforms, NSIL has been mandated to task the building of launch vehicle through Indian Industry and launch as per satellite customer requirements. With the operationalization of IN-SPACe, the progressively evolving regulatory environment, a greater private sector participation in end-to-end space activities is expected, which may result in increased share of India in the global space economy.
5-Jul-2019: New Space India Ltd. incorporated as a new commercial arm of D/o Space
Presenting the General Budget 2019-20 in the Parliament today, Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman said that a Public Sector Enterprise viz. New Space India Limited (NSIL) has been incorporated as a new commercial arm of Department of Space to tap the benefits of the Research & Development carried out by ISRO.
The Company will spearhead commercialization of various space products including production of launch vehicles, transfer to technologies and marketing of space products. The Minister said that, “India has emerged as a major space power with the technology and ability to launch satellites and other space products at globally low cost. Time has come to harness this ability commercially”.
The Budget Estimates for Department of Space for FY 2019-20 is Rs 12,473.26 crore as compared to the RE of Rs 11,200 crore in FY 2018-19.
25-May-2022: NICSI signs MoU with Delhi School of Management for R&D management and Consultancy in e-Governance
National Informatics Centre Services Incorporated (NICSI), a Government of India Enterprise under National Informatics Centre, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), and Delhi School of Management (DSM), Delhi Technological University (DTU) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 24th May, 2022 in the presence of Dr. Rajendra Kumar, Additional Secretary MeitY and Chairman NICSI, Shri Prashant Kumar Mittal, MD NICSI, Dr. Archana Singh. HoD, DSM DTU and Prof P. K. Suri DSM DTU for Research & Development (R&D) and Consultancy in area of e-Governance by synergizing resources / capabilities with each other.
Other Senior Officers of MeitY, NICSI and DSM DTU attended the event including Shri Shobhendra Bahadur, Director MeitY and VO NICSI, Smt. Anjali Dhingra, Sr. GM & HoD CEDA NICSI, Shri Ashutosh P. Maurya, DGM NICSI, Shri Sunny Jain, CS NICSI, Prof. P. K. Suri DSM, Prof. Rajan Yadav DSM and Mr. Yashdeep Singh, Assistant Professor, DSM.
On the occasion, Dr. Rajendra Kumar, Additional Secretary MeitY and Chairman NICSI briefed about the vision of MeitY in terms of use of technology for digital transformation for benefit of citizens and effective utilization of resources (manpower, knowledge, infrastructure etc.) by collaborative effort to enhance the efficiency of outcomes. MeitY is working with other Ministries to extend use of technology to facilitate them with understanding of specific domains like agriculture, education, healthcare etc. with problem solving approach in team effort by utilizing knowledge of academicians. This MoU may be helpful to MeitY & DTU ecosystem in coming years by exploration of technology and involvement of students in collaborative ways in maturing new areas like IoT, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain etc. The expertise of DSM in area of management will also facilitate NICSI for development of business strategies and planning.
Shri Prashant Kumar Mittal, MD NICSI briefed about the scope of this MoU between NICSI and DSM DTU and added that this collaboration will be mutually beneficial for both the entities. The students of DSM DTU may explore the utilization of emerging technologies and develop a better understand of the working environment of Government organizations/departments with hands on exposure in area of ICT management and eGovernance. This will also be helpful to the Government in strengthening its internal system with effective better utilization of technology.
Prof. P. K. Suri of DSM DTU has talked about the functioning and activities of DSM DTU in the area of expertise specially in ICT & eGovernance and how this MoU can be beneficial for both the institutions in the long term. Dr. Archana Singh, HOD DSM expressed interest in this collaborative approach for NICSI and DSM including involvement of students in areas of research, data analytics, e-Governance processes and also for conducting of conferences / workshops.