Oil And Gas Stocks Trade Mixed After Centre Clears ₹84,084 Crore Samudra Manthan Scheme

Oil and gas stocks ended up on both sides of the market on Monday, 3 August 2026, after the Union Cabinet approved the ₹84,084 crore Samudra Manthan scheme on 31 July.

By around 1:00 PM, Dolphin Offshore Enterprises (India) jumped 10.20% to ₹414.20. Deep Industries gained 5.11% to ₹627.40, while Reliance Industries inched up 0.19% to ₹1,310.30.

Not every stock moved higher. Oil India fell 1.60% to ₹451.25. ONGC was down 0.35% at ₹241.67, even though both companies are expected to play a key role as offshore exploration expands.

Companies connected to offshore engineering and oilfield services also remained in focus. These include L&T's Hydrocarbon business, which builds offshore platforms, subsea facilities and pipelines, along with Vedanta Oil & Gas, as fresh exploration work could create additional business opportunities.

What The Scheme Is About

Samudra Manthan is the official name of the National Offshore Exploration Scheme. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas will implement it with a total outlay of ₹84,084 crore. The programme will continue until FY2030-31.

The scheme takes its name from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day speech in 2025, where he spoke about a modern-day Samudra Manthan. This programme is centred on offshore exploration. The idea is to look for more oil and gas within India's own waters instead of relying more heavily on imports.

The work will cover fresh seismic surveys, deepwater and ultra-deepwater drilling, and new offshore infrastructure. The government expects the programme to help identify additional hydrocarbon reserves, support jobs and increase the use of locally made equipment and services.

Where The Money Will Go

The spending has been divided into four parts.

• ₹28,534 crore has been allocated for collecting and processing modern offshore seismic data.

• ₹43,200 crore will be spent on drilling 60 deepwater exploration wells. Government support will cover up to 50% of the eligible drilling cost, or ₹675 crore per well, whichever is lower.

• ₹10,000 crore has been set aside to build common offshore infrastructure that can support future commercial production from new discoveries.

• ₹2,000 crore will be used to develop Oil and Gas Manufacturing and Services Zones. The objective is to increase domestic production of critical equipment and strengthen local service capabilities.

This is one of the Centre's biggest offshore exploration programmes in recent years and is expected to increase exploration activity across India's offshore energy sector over the next five years.

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