New Delhi, June 6 -- Oil India Ltd on Friday reported the presence of natural gas in the Andaman Offshore Basin, marking a significant milestone in its exploration journey and underscoring India's frontier hydrocarbon potential. The discovery came from exploratory well Sri Vijayapuram-3, drilled 15 km off the east coast of the Andaman Islands at a water depth of 355 meters.

Initial production testing of the well at 1900+ meters depth in the Eocene formation established continuous flaring, confirming the presence of natural gas. Oil India is currently carrying out gas sampling to assess composition and calorific value, along with isotope studies to understand the genesis of the gas. The company noted that hydrocarbon presence has now been...