Adding another feather to its cap, energy major Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) received the Federation of Indian Petroleum Industries (FIPI) Oil & Gas Exploration Company of the Year 2019 Award on 2 December 2019. The Energy Maharatna was conferred the coveted award for being the leading performer in Exploration, while complying with the norms of occupational health and safety.

ONGC Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Mr Shashi Shanker, Director (HR) Dr Alka Mittal, Director (Finance) Mr Subhash Kumar and Director (Onshore) Mr Sanjay Kumar Moitra received the prestigious award from Union Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Steel Mr Dharmendra Pradhan. Also present during the ceremony were FIPI Chairman and IOCL Chairman Mr Sanjiv Singh, FIPI Director General Dr R K Malhotra and FIPI Director (Exploration and Production) Mr T K Sengupta.

From Left: TK Sengupta, Sanjiv Singh, SK Moitra, Subhash Kumar, Dharmendra Pradhan, Dr Alka Mittal, Shashi Shanker and Dr RK Malhotra

Speaking after giving away the awards, Mr Dharmendra Pradhan critically analyzed the evaluation of the FIPI Awards 2019 and appreciated the jury for their choice of awardees. He noted that the selection of nominees and the winners of this year’s awards clearly reflect that even non-FIPI members are also conferred with the honor un-biasedly.

Mr Pradhan said that the Oil and Gas vertical of the Energy industry commands one of the largest volumes of the Indian economy; the oil & gas companies have a combined turnover of over Rs 20 Lakh Crore. Stating that the sector has the capability of creating a global disruption, he said that the Oil & Gas sector should not undermine its capability. The Minister talked of the competitiveness of the sector with India having a lot of technical talent and skilled labor in the country is also cheaper in comparison of other countries.

Dharmendra Pradhan speaking at the occasion

Pointing out that there had been several reforms in the past five years, the Petroleum Minister said that the implantation of the reforms require a concerted effort by all stakeholders in the industry – which is significantly evident these days. “Oil and Gas industries play a pivotal role in providing energy to every household in the country and hence acts as a catalyst in the country’s social change,” he said. He stressed on the fact that industry should work harder to make energy consumption affordable enough to reach every family in the country.

Mr Pradhan suggested two more categories for the next year’s FIPI Oil and Gas Awards – Innovative Energy Delivery and Innovative Green Energy Company of the year. He asked the Oil and Gas fraternity to relax purchase norms to allow innovative products to enter the industry. He also encouraged young executives to deliver innovative solutions and urged industries to allow entrepreneurship among PSU employees, who have innovative business models in mind. “Efficient executives should be part of the Board early in their career so that they get enough time for good leadership.”

Dignitaries at FIPI Oil & Gas Awards 2019

However, Mr Pradhan also expressed concern over the global economic downfall. He said that the two major reasons for this are – geo-political situation between major economies USA and China and the volatility of the crude oil prices.

Release of IEF Task Force Report on ‘Roadmap for a Robust Gas Based Economy in India’ by Dharmendra Pradhan (Third from Right) and former Secretary Power Anil Razdan (Third from Left)

The FIPI Oil and Gas Awards 2019 were more competitive this year, witnessing 167 nominations compared to 128 nominations in the previous year. The knowledge partner of FIPI in selecting the awardees of this year’s awards was US management consulting firm Boston Consulting Group (BCG).