New Delhi, 31 August (H.S.): The Congress has questioned the Centre’s ‘Samudra Manthan’ scheme and demanded that it be scrapped. The party alleged that under the scheme, the government plans to use public funds to mitigate the risks associated with oil and gas exploration by private companies, despite state-owned energy major ONGC having decades of experience in the sector. The Congress has demanded that the proposed allocation of Rs 84,084 crore be given to ONGC to undertake exploration and generate employment.

Addressing a press conference at the Congress headquarters here on Monday, party spokesperson Shakti Singh Gohil said the Central Government had recently approved the ‘Samudra Manthan’ scheme. A substantial outlay of Rs 84,084 crore has been proposed for the first phase of the scheme, under which the government will bear up to 50 per cent of the expenditure associated with deep-sea oil and gas exploration.

Gohil claimed that Adani Welspun Exploration Limited (AWEL), a company associated with the Adani Group, would also benefit from the scheme. He said the Adani Group holds a 65 per cent stake in the company, while the remaining 35 per cent is held by the Welspun Group. He alleged that with government financial assistance, the company would be able to undertake deep-sea drilling, 2D and 3D seismic surveys, reprocessing of existing geological data and activities related to offshore infrastructure.

He said the government had stated that the objective of the scheme was to reduce risks associated with oil and gas exploration and encourage private investment. “Why should public money be used to reduce this risk for private companies?” he asked. He added that while increasing domestic oil and gas production was essential, a public-sector company such as ONGC should be given a leading role in achieving this objective.

Gohil said the exploration of a single deep-sea oil well could cost more than Rs 1,100 crore on average. According to him, with the government covering up to 50 per cent of the cost, the financial risk associated with exploration for private companies would be substantially reduced. If exploration proves successful, he argued, a significant share of the resulting benefits would accrue to the concerned private company, while part of the risk would effectively be borne through taxpayers’ money.

Gohil said AWEL has obtained exploration rights for various blocks in the Mumbai Offshore Basin, Tapi-Daman and Kutch regions. He claimed that the company was preparing to commence large-scale oil and gas exploration activities in the coming months.

On the basis of these claims, the Congress has sought greater clarity from the government regarding the structure of the scheme and the companies that stand to benefit from it.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar