ExxonMobil will be exploring in partnership with state-owned ONGC
ExxonMobil takes a chance on India’s upstream
The major’s involvement is a win for New Delhi as it seeks to promote offshore exploration
ExxonMobil and Indian state-owned oil and gas producer ONGC have agreed to explore territory off the east and west coasts of India, in what is being seen as a major show of faith in the country’s deepwater potential. The US major is bucking a trend among foreign investors, many of whom have withdrawn from the South Asian upstream in recent years. “We understand [ExxonMobil] has studied the deepwater potential of Indian basins—and of neighbouring countries too—for a number of years, so it must see some resource potential to proceed,” says Angus Rodger, research director for Asia Pacific at consultancy Wood Mackenzie. “If large resources of gas can be found and developed at a competitive cost,
Also in this section
17 February 2026
The 25th WPC Energy Congress, taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from 26–30 April 2026, will bring together leaders from the political, industrial, financial and technology sectors under the unifying theme “Pathways to an Energy Future for All”
17 February 2026
Siemens Energy has been active in the Kingdom for nearly a century, evolving over that time from a project-based foreign supplier to a locally operating multi-national company with its own domestic supply chain and workforce
17 February 2026
Eni’s chief operating officer for global natural resources, Guido Brusco, takes stock of the company’s key achievements over the past year, and what differentiates its strategy from those of its peers in the LNG sector and beyond
16 February 2026
As the third wave of global LNG arrives, Wood Mackenzie’s director for Europe gas and LNG, Tom Marzec-Manser, discusses with Petroleum Economist the outlook for Europe’s gas market in 2026
