The Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas is setting up a National Hydrocarbon Technology Hub to strengthen research and development in India’s oil and gas sector and help move laboratory work towards commercial use, Joint Secretary Alok Tripathi said on Wednesday.
The proposed hub is intended to create a nationally coordinated research ecosystem for technologies developed across the sector. Tripathi said the initiative would focus on realising the potential of such technologies by improving the path from research outcomes to commercially viable applications.
He was speaking on the sidelines of the 29th Energy Technology Meet 2026 in Goa. The event drew more than 2,500 participants and around 250 speakers, and included an exhibition covering technologies used in the upstream, midstream and downstream parts of the oil and gas industry. The display also featured green molecules, including compressed biogas.
Focus on commercialising research
The theme of this year’s meet, “From Research to Commercialization”, placed the conversion of scientific work into deployable technology at the centre of discussions. The proposed hub reflects that approach by seeking to link research institutions, industry and government support within a national framework.
The ministry has also signed memorandums of understanding with academic institutions, including the Indian Institutes of Technology and the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology, to expand research support. These partnerships are expected to provide a stronger institutional base for work on challenges faced by the oil and gas industry.
As part of the initiative, the ministry will sponsor up to 100 PhD scholars working in the oil and gas field. According to Tripathi, the assistance will allow scholars to devote more time to research and development and could help build an academic ecosystem aligned with industry requirements over the next five years.
| Initiative | Details |
|---|---|
| National technology hub | To coordinate research and support commercialisation in the hydrocarbon sector |
| Academic partnerships | MoUs signed with IITs and RGIPT |
| Research support | Up to 100 PhD scholars to be sponsored |
| Research horizon | Strengthening the academic ecosystem over five years |
Building domestic technology capability
The announcement also comes as India’s oil companies seek to improve operational efficiency while reducing energy consumption. Tripathi said the industry’s attention was increasingly moving beyond performance alone towards sustainability. Indian oil companies are working with global technology providers to introduce energy-efficient systems and are also developing such solutions within the country.
“We no longer wish to have a traditional association where the foreign companies are selling the technology and we are buying the technology.”
The statement points to a shift in the relationship between Indian energy companies and international technology providers. Rather than relying only on imported solutions, the ministry is seeking greater domestic participation in the creation and adaptation of technologies for refining and other parts of the energy value chain.
The meet also gave international technology companies an opportunity to understand India’s policy reforms and investment opportunities in the oil and gas sector. Its broad participation across industry segments indicates that the proposed research network is being positioned within a wider technology ecosystem, covering conventional hydrocarbons as well as newer areas such as compressed biogas.
The hub, academic agreements and doctoral support together form the main elements of the ministry’s research strategy. Their impact will depend on how effectively research findings are connected to industrial needs and converted into usable technologies. For India’s energy sector, the stated objective is to build stronger domestic capability while improving efficiency and supporting the development of cleaner and more sustainable processes.
- National coordination: A dedicated hub is planned to connect hydrocarbon research and technology development.
- Talent development: The ministry will support up to 100 PhD scholars in the sector.
- Industry transition: Refining companies are pursuing energy-efficient technologies and greater in-house development.
