ONGC to invest Rs 2 trn in energy transition projects, says chairman

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will invest about Rs 2 lakh crore to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2038, its chairman Arun Kumar Singh said on Tuesday.

The firm will invest Rs 1 lakh crore by 2030 in setting up 10 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity, green ammonia plant, and offshore wind energy projects, he told reporters here.

The remaining would flow thereafter to achieve Scope-1 and 2 net zero carbon emissions.

All this while it continues to hunt and produce more oil and gas.

"It is not an 'or' strategy. It is an 'and' story. ONGC will continue to invest in oil and gas exploration and production and also in energy transition projects," he said.

The company will pursue both simultaneously.

"ONGC has enough heft, financial muscle to do both," he said.

The company currently has 189 MW of capacity to generate electricity from renewable sources. It is targeting 10 GW by 2030. The firm already has signed MoU for 5 GW in Rajasthan and is scouting for projects for similar size, he said.

Besides, it wants to set up 25 compressed bio gas plants that will convert agri-residue into gas that can be used to run automobiles (CNG) or used in industries to generate electricity and fertilizer.

The company is also scouting for opportunities to set up a 1 million tonnes per annum green ammonia plant, he said.

India's largest crude oil and natural gas producer said it has detailed a "roadmap to scale up its low-carbon energy portfolio significantly".

Integrating sustainable practices into core operations has enabled a reduction in Scope-1 and Scope-2 emissions by 17 per cent in the last five years. ONGC has reduced its emissions by 2.66 per cent in FY23 (April 2022 to March 2023 fiscal year).

"ONGC plans to significantly increase its spending on green initiatives to reduce its carbon footprint as a broader effort to achieve net-zero for Scope-1 and Scope-2 emissions by 2038," he said.

The firm is in an advanced stage of crafting collaborations with leading players in the energy space on various low-carbon energy opportunities including renewables, green hydrogen, green ammonia and other derivatives of green hydrogen.

ONGC is also planning to set up two green-field oil-to-chemical (O2C) plants.

Singh however said oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) will remain the cornerstone of its energy business. Extensive exploration in known basins as well as frontier plays, sustained production from existing fields and exploitation of deep-water fields remain the central areas of emphasis, he said.

Crude oil, which companies like ONGC pump out from below seabed and from underground reservoirs, is a primary source of energy. It is processed in oil refineries to produce petrol, diesel and jet fuel. With the world looking to transition away from fossil fuel, companies around the globe are looking at new avenues to use crude oil.

Petrochemicals are chemical products derived from crude oil and are used in the manufacturing of detergents, fibres (polyester, nylon, acrylic etc.), polythene and other man-made plastics.

Crude oil-to-chemicals (COTC) technology allows the direct conversion of crude oil to high-value chemical products instead of traditional transportation fuels.

Scope 1 emissions are from directly emitting sources that are owned or controlled by a company. Scope 2 emissions are from the consumption of purchased electricity, steam, or other sources of energy generated upstream from a company's direct operations.

ONGC produced 19.584 million tonnes (MT) of oil in 2022-23, up from 19.545 MT of previous year. The output is likely to rise to 20.232 MT in the current fiscal (April 2023 to March 2024) and to 21.265 MT in 2024-25.

Natural gas output is slated to rise from 20.636 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2022-23 to 20.882 bcm in 2023-24, 22.171 bcm in the following year and 23.708 bcm in 2025-26.