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The Union Cabinet approved Samudra Manthan – National Offshore Exploration Scheme, a Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, with an outlay of ?84,084 crore for implementation up to FY 2030–31.

What is Samudra Manthan?

• Samudra Manthan is a flagship initiative to accelerate offshore oil and gas exploration by supporting the entire upstream exploration value chain through public investment, advanced technologies, and common infrastructure.
• The scheme aims to unlock India's offshore hydrocarbon potential, strengthen energy security, increase domestic oil and gas production, reduce import dependence, and build a globally competitive offshore energy ecosystem under Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Key Features

• Total Outlay:?84,084 crore (100% Central Sector Scheme).
• Implementation Period: Up to FY 2030–31.
• Deepwater & Ultra-Deepwater Exploration:?43,200 crore allocated to support high-risk exploratory drilling, covering up to 50% of drilling costs (up to ?650–675 crore per well).
• Seismic Data Acquisition:?28,534 crore for acquisition, processing, and interpretation of high-quality seismic data in frontier and previously unexplored offshore basins.
• Common Offshore Infrastructure:?10,000 crore for shared offshore production facilities and evacuation infrastructure, including pipeline networks.
• Oil & Gas Manufacturing and Services Zones:?2,000 crore to establish dedicated manufacturing and services hubs for indigenous offshore equipment and technologies.
• Digital Programme Management: Strengthens the National Data Repository (NDR), capacity building, technology adoption, and stakeholder engagement.

Significance

The scheme is expected to:

• Add over 600 Million Metric Tons of Oil Equivalent (MMTOE) to India's hydrocarbon reserves.
• Increase domestic offshore oil and natural gas production.
• Reduce dependence on imported crude oil.
• Attract investments in offshore exploration and production.
• Promote indigenous manufacturing and offshore technology development.
• Generate large-scale employment and strengthen long-term energy security.