India's Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has commenced drilling a strategic stratigraphic well, AND-P-1, in the deepwater frontier of the Andaman basin. The primary objective is to acquire detailed subsurface data to evaluate geological formations, hydrocarbon systems, and sedimentary sequences, thereby assessing the basin's oil and gas potential. This well is a key component of the Indian government's 'Samudra Manthan' campaign, which aims to enhance national energy security and reduce the country's dependence on imports.

Operational and Logistical Details

The well was spudded on 27 January and is situated approximately 495 kilometres from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in a geologically complex and logistically challenging area. The drilling is being performed by the Transocean-owned drillship Dhirubhai Deepwater KG-1, which is under a firm contract with ONGC until February 2026. While specific target depth and test results for AND-P-1 were not disclosed, the government's broader initiative involves drilling stratigraphic wells to depths between 6000 and 9000 metres across varying water depths.

Broader Exploration Context

This operation is part of a larger national push to strengthen geological understanding across India's offshore basins. The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas is heavily investing in speculative seismic surveys and exploration, tasking state-owned operators like ONGC and Oil India (OIL) with the work. OIL began a three-well offshore campaign in the Andaman basin in 2024, having already confirmed natural gas occurrence in a key well the previous year. These efforts are critical for India, which currently imports over 80% of its crude oil, as the government seeks to reduce oil import dependency by 10% through increased domestic exploration and a greater share of natural gas in the energy mix.