ONGC spuds first deepwater exploratory well in Mahanadi Basin
ONGC commenced drilling on its first deepwater exploratory well in the Mahanadi Offshore Basin, with India’s Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri virtually spudding the well, MN-DW18-1-H-D, from New Delhi on 25 July 2026.
The well sits approximately 23 nautical miles from ONGC’s Konark discovery off the Odisha coast and marks the start of the Government of India’s Samudra Manthan campaign to explore the country’s deep and ultra-deepwater energy resources.
The well builds on ONGC’s recent Utkal and Konark discoveries, which strengthened the hydrocarbon prospectivity of the Mahanadi Offshore Basin. To support the campaign, ONGC launched its Deepwater Exploration Mission Centre, DeepX, in Mumbai on 5 January 2026, integrating the company’s geoscientific expertise and interpretation capabilities under a “One Company, One Data” approach.
India’s eastern and western offshore basins, extending to water depths of up to 3,000 m, are estimated to hold more than 5,600 MMTOE of hydrocarbon potential. The government has opened nearly one million sq km of previously restricted offshore areas for exploration through upcoming OALP rounds.
