NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th February, 2022) India intends to double the area for oil and gas exploration and production to 0.5 million square kilometers (50 million hectares) by 2025 to increase domestic output and rely less on imported fuel, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday.
At the moment, India's dependence on linked imports accounts for 85% of its needs in oil and 50% in gas, according to the minister.
"To boost domestic oil and gas production, we have announced an ambitious goal to increase the area of exploration and production to 0.5 million square kilometers by 2025 and reach 1 million square kilometers by 2030," Puri told the World Energy Policy Summit.
In the foreseeable future, India will keep using hydrocarbons to meet its energy needs, the minister went on, adding that an increase in the national economy from the current $3 trillion to $5 trillion by 2025, and up to $10 trillion by 2030, will lead to an increase in demand for carriers.
India is also focused on the introduction of green hydrogen extraction technology to become a hub of the development of green hydrogen, with national oil and gas companies working out projects on using hydrogen as fuel and injecting it into gas pipelines, he explained.
According to Puri, India's economic rise will greatly contribute to the revival of the global economy, including the UN-set Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
