ONGC looks at foray into offshore mining

LOOKS TO ATTAIN NET ZERO EMISSIONS BY 2038

- ARUNIMA BHARADWAJ

STATE-OWNED OIL AND Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is looking to venture into mining of offshore minerals given the company's technical expertise in drilling in subsurface and offshore areas, a senior executive at the company said.

"We are not looking to bid right now (under the first tranche of offshore mineral auction) but we do have acreages offshore so we will be happy if we get something there," the source said.

This comes amid the government's target of increasing domestic exploration and production of critical minerals to achieve the country's net zero targets by 2070 and reduce dependency on imports of such minerals. Minerals like lithium, copper, cobalt and rare earth elements are used in various sectors like nuclear energy, renewable energy, space, defence, telecommunications, etc.