OPEN ACREAGE LICENSING POLICY (OALP)
GS 3: Economy | Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc. Prelims Level: Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP)
Why in News?
The ministry of petroleum and natural gas has launched the third bidding round under the Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP).
OLAP:
- It provides uniform licences for exploration and production of all forms of hydrocarbons, enabling contractors to explore conventional as well as unconventional oil and gas resources. Fields are offered under a revenue-sharing model.
- It allows marketing and pricing freedom for crude oil and natural gas produced.
- Under the OALP, once an explorer selects areas after evaluating the National Data Repository (NDR) and submits the EoI.
- It is to be put up for competitive bidding and the entity offering the maximum share of oil and gas to the government is awarded the block.
National Data Repository:
- It has been created to provide explorers’ data on the country’s repositories, allowing them
to choose fields according to their capabilities. - Data received through the National Seismic Programme, an in-depth study of 26 sedimentary basins, are continuously being added to the NDR.