Union Minister for Petroleum and Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, has praised the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) for its recent stock market achievement. ONGC’s share price reached an unprecedented high of INR 323 per share on Monday, representing a 5.18 per cent intra-day gain. This surge elevated the company’s market capitalisation to INR 4.06 lakh crore.
Minister Puri took to the X social media platform to congratulate ONGC on this milestone, noting that the exceptional share price performance is consistent with trends observed across other Oil and Gas Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). By Tuesday, ONGC’s stock had climbed even further to INR 325 per share.
This remarkable performance has positioned ONGC as the 15th most valuable listed company in India and the third most valuable PSU, trailing only the State Bank of India and the Life Insurance Corporation of India. Minister Puri attributed this success to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s guidance, leadership, and timely decision-making, which he believes have transformed PSUs into confident and professional global energy leaders.
In a related development, Minister Puri announced last month that ONGC is poised to commence gas production from its deep-water field in the Krishna-Godavari block ‘KG-DWN-98/2’ off the eastern coast. The company has initiated a tender process to secure an international technology partner for this venture. Oil production from this field is expected to increase to 45,000 barrels per day soon.
The minister also highlighted the robust financial performance of public sector oil marketing companies, which reported a combined profit of INR 86,000 crore for the fiscal year 2023-24. This figure represents a dramatic increase of over 25 times compared to the previous year, which was characterised by extraordinary challenges.
In a move that could benefit upstream oil exploration and production companies like ONGC and Oil India Ltd, the government recently reduced the windfall tax on petroleum crude to INR 3,250 per metric tonne from INR 5,200. This decision was influenced by the decline in international crude oil prices over the past fortnight.
These developments collectively underscore the dynamic nature of India’s oil and gas sector, with ONGC’s stock market success serving as a prominent indicator of the industry’s current strength and future potential.