New Delhi: Oil India Limited (OIL) is now focused on turning the Rs 21,673.75 crore its group invested in FY 2025-26 into operating cash flows and higher output. Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Dr Ranjit Rath set out the priority while addressing shareholders at the company's 67th annual general meeting on Thursday.
Follow Energy Watch on X
According to Rath, the spending reflects "the scale and breadth of OIL's growth agenda across exploration, production, refining and infrastructure." He then told shareholders what OIL now expects from that capital. "Our focus is now on timely commissioning, rapid ramp-up and disciplined conversion of capital employed into operating cash flows and sustainable returns," he said.
The company's statement on the AGM said Rath outlined four areas of focus for OIL. These are growing domestic oil and gas production, expanding India's hydrocarbon resource base, building capabilities for frontier offshore exploration and developing scalable new energy businesses. The company will pursue these "while maintaining capital discipline and a strong balance sheet," the statement said.
OIL's mature producing fields are central to the push for more output. Rath said a structured Gap Analysis of these assets "has identified further production enhancement opportunities." According to him, it has also "reinforced an integrated well-reservoir-surface approach, encompassing artificial lift, water handling and facility debottlenecking while safeguarding reservoir health."
The interventions OIL used in these fields included hydraulic fracturing and Plunger Lift Systems. It also introduced Single String Multi-Zone Completion technology for the first time. Rath said the company will now take these methods further. "The focus is now on disciplined field execution and scaling up proven interventions to sustainably unlock additional production from existing assets," he said.
OIL is taking a similar approach to its exploration acreage. Committed seismic acquisition has been completed in 31 of the 34 Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) blocks where it holds a valid petroleum exploration licence. According to Rath, a structured stage-gate approach "is being adopted to progressively evaluate and de-risk prospects" in these blocks. He said the aim is "accelerating resource maturation and building a stronger pipeline of opportunities for future production growth."
The focus on delivery also applies to Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL). Its refinery expansion and the Paradip-Numaligarh Crude Oil Pipeline are moving closer to completion. As they do, Rath said, "the focus is now on safe commissioning, rapid stabilisation, feedstock and market integration, and timely value realisation from the expanded refining capacity."
Rath also noted that two recent government schemes "provide significant policy impetus to two areas in which OIL is building its future capabilities," the company's statement said. The first is Samudra Manthan, the national offshore exploration scheme, which has an outlay of Rs 84,084 crore up to FY 2030-31. OIL holds offshore acreage in the Andaman, Mahanadi and Krishna-Godavari basins, including its first ultra-deepwater operatorship. Given that footprint, Rath said OIL "is well positioned to participate meaningfully in this national offshore exploration mission."
The statement said OIL is building its deep and ultra-deepwater capabilities through "advanced seismic evaluation, technology partnerships and preparations for future offshore drilling campaigns." OIL recently expanded technical services agreement with TotalEnergies, which, Rath said, brings global deepwater expertise to strengthen prospect evaluation.
Follow Energy Watch on LinkedIN
The second scheme is the GOBARdhan – National Circular Bioenergy Scheme, which has an outlay of Rs 23,731 crore. The company said it covers municipal organic waste as well as agricultural residue, cattle dung, press mud and other biomass. Through OIL Green Energy Limited, OIL is pursuing integrated compressed biogas and waste-to-energy projects based on municipal solid waste. According to the statement, the company is "positioning bioenergy as an emerging growth area within the Company's clean-energy portfolio."
