Current Affairs - Places - Discussion

Oil India Ltd (OIL) announced its first confirmed natural gas discovery off the Andaman Islands, marking a major milestone in India’s offshore energy exploration. The Hydrocarbon Resource Assessment Study (HRAS) has estimated around 371 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent (MMTOE) in the Andaman Basin, which is part of the Bengal-Arakan sedimentary system. Located at the tectonic boundary between the Indian and Burmese plates, the basin contains favorable geological conditions such as stratigraphic traps. This discovery significantly boosts India’s prospects for future energy self-reliance while highlighting the strategic importance of the Andaman region in hydrocarbon exploration.