State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) reported a 1.6 per cent increase in net profit for the December quarter, aided by higher realizations from new wells and reduced statutory levies, which offset the impact of lower crude oil prices.
The company reported a standalone net profit of Rs 8,372 crore for October-December quarter of 2025-26 financial year, compared with Rs 8,240 crore earning in the same period a year back, according to a company statement.
India’s top producer of crude oil – the key feedstock for fuels such as petrol and diesel – and natural gas, used for power generation, fertiliser production, and conversion into CNG and cooking gas, realised over 10 per cent lower earnings on every barrel of crude produced. Natural gas revenues, however, rose.
The company earned USD 61.63 per barrel in Q3, down from USD 72.57 a barrel in October-December 2024. Gas sales price, however, improved to USD 6.59 per million British thermal units from USD 6.50. ONGC Director (Finance) Vivek Chandrakant Tongaonkar said during an investor call that the earnings rose on the back of higher revenues from new well gas, higher other income and lower statutory levies.
Under the government’s new well gas pricing formula, output from newly drilled fields is priced at a premium to the administered price mechanism (APM) rate, allowing producers to realise higher revenues from incremental production.
