Multiple energy companies, both domestic and international, have submitted bids for the ninth round of India's Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP-9), as confirmed by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), the country's upstream regulator. 

India is aiming to increase domestic energy production, primarily oil and gas, and decrease dependence on imports, as its industrialisation process continues.  

This latest bidding round furthers India's ongoing objective of attracting investment in its oil and gas sector. 

The OALP-9 round encompasses 28 oil and gas blocks, spanning an area of around 136,000km² across various sedimentary basins. 

These blocks have been strategically chosen for their potential to yield both conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon resources, creating opportunities for exploration and production. 

Key bidders include prominent domestic companies such as the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Vedanta and Reliance Industries, as well as international energy giants like BP.  

The participation of these major players reflects the growing interest in India's energy sector, driven by government policy reforms that are designed to improve the ease of doing business and provide more appealing terms to investors. 

For the first time, Reliance Industries-bp partnered with ONGC to bid for a block in the Gujarat offshore region. 

Reliance and its partner bp participated in only two of the past eight oil and gas bid rounds since 2017. The Reliance-bp partnership bid for and won two blocks in the previous rounds. According to reports, this marks its first collaboration with ONGC to bid for a shallow water block in the Gujarat-Saurashtra basin.