RoydadNaft –  Oil India Limited is looking to collaborate with international oil companies (IOCs) for deep and ultra-deep water exploration as the government opened bidding for major offshore blocks under the latest OALP (Open Acreage Licensing Policy) bidding round, Chairman and Managing Director Ranjit Rath told Moneycontrol in an interview.

Rath said the approval of the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill, 2024—aimed at facilitating investments in the country’s oil and gas exploration projects—would be an enabler for IOCs to look at India as an exploration destination.

“For our collaboration, the ORD Act will be a major enabler for international oil companies to look at India as an exploration destination. Given that we have our presence in Andaman and Nicobar, and we are carrying out drilling, there is lot of interest with the international companies and national oil companies and we are in touch with a couple of them. The MOUs are in place with a confidentiality agreement, and they are all going through our data, and they are also doing their internal assessment,” said Rath.