Oil & Natural Gas Corpn (ONGC) and bp have signed a new technical services contract on 25 June 2026, expanding their collaboration beyond the Mumbai High field. According to Drilling & Production, the agreement appoints bp as the Technical Services Provider (TSP) for ONGC's fields in the Western Offshore Basin, marking a significant expansion of their partnership from the Mumbai High operations. The collaboration will focus on working together across reservoirs, wells, and production facilities to moderate natural production decline and improve operational efficiency. The agreement was signed on Thursday, with ONGC stating that the partnership will expand the deployment of advanced technologies, technical expertise and operational practices across the basin's assets.
The Western Offshore Basin represents ONGC's most prolific hydrocarbon-producing region, comprising 43 blocks and contributing significantly to India's energy requirements for over four decades. As reported by Drilling & Production, ONGC plays a pivotal role as India's National Oil Company, accounting for approximately 64% of India's domestic crude oil and natural gas production. The basin's strategic importance stems from its long-term contribution to the country's energy security infrastructure, making this partnership crucial for maintaining India's energy security objectives.
Under the contract terms, bp will receive a fixed fee for the first two years, followed by a service fee linked to a percentage share of revenue generated from net incremental hydrocarbon production. According to Drilling & Production, ONGC will retain complete ownership and operational control of the assets while bp works alongside ONGC teams on reservoir management, well optimisation and production facility improvements. The collaboration aims to moderate natural production decline, increase hydrocarbon recovery and improve operational efficiency to support long-term output growth across some of India's most important mature hydrocarbon assets.
The expanded agreement builds on the successful technical services contract signed by ONGC and bp for Mumbai High in February 2025, which delivered encouraging results during its first year. During the collaboration at Mumbai High, the two companies successfully moderated production decline and achieved production growth through optimization of existing wells, enhanced surveillance and focused reservoir, well and facility-management initiatives. Arun Kumar Singh, Chairman and CEO of ONGC, stated that building on the encouraging outcomes at Mumbai High, this expanded collaboration will support improved recovery, greater efficiency and sustained production growth. Kartikeya Dube, bp India Chairman and Senior Vice President, expressed enthusiasm about leveraging bp's global expertise to help enhance production from the Western Offshore Basin and strengthen India's energy security, with the agreement expected to support efforts to improve output from mature oil and gas fields while contributing to the country's long-term energy security objectives.
