ONGC Streamlines Western Offshore Operations Through Major Outsourcing Contract.

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is planning to outsource its entire western offshore supply chain operations to a single entity in a move aimed at replacing its current multi-vendor model, which costs the company around $600 million annually.

Describing the initiative as a strategic shift, ONGC Director (Production) Pankaj Kumar said the company intends to focus on its core exploration and production activities while delegating logistics operations to specialised service providers.

“The thought is big. It’s not our expertise. We need output,” Kumar told ET Infra.

As part of the plan, ONGC has floated an Expression of Interest (EoI) to identify a partner capable of providing integrated end-to-end marine logistics, fleet management, and shore base operations for its western offshore assets.

The western offshore cluster—including Mumbai High, Bassein & Satellite (B&S), and Neelam-Heera—forms one of India’s largest offshore oil and gas hubs, located 30–180 km off the Mumbai coast. These fields are supported by supply bases at Nhava Sheva and Pipavav ports and service 68 offshore installations, including rigs, platforms, FPSOs, and mobile units.

ONGC currently operates a marine fleet comprising offshore support vessels, platform supply vessels, and anchor handling tug cum supply vessels, handling large monthly logistics volumes that include thousands of tonnes of cargo, fuel, water, and equipment movements.

Under the proposed outsourcing framework, the selected vendor will manage warehousing, cargo handling, transportation, customs coordination, reverse logistics, and operation of key infrastructure such as weighbridges, cargo scanners, and bulk handling facilities. The contractor will also coordinate offshore vessel scheduling and cargo movement across all offshore assets.

However, ONGC has clarified that core procurement activities, including rig hiring, will remain in-house.

“Rig hiring will be done by us. Today I am running over 50 offshore support vessels. It’s quite likely that some efficient operator may come and do it with 40, that’s the value I am looking at,” Kumar said.

The initial contract is expected to run for 3–5 years, with ONGC indicating that shorter tenures may not attract sufficient participation from global logistics players.

Industry participants have welcomed the proposal, calling it a step toward cost optimisation and alignment with global practices, though some have suggested a phased transition rather than a complete outsourcing overhaul.

ONGC has said the move is aimed at ensuring more reliable, efficient, and safe logistics support to maintain uninterrupted exploration and production activities critical to India’s energy security.