Oil And Gas Ancillary Stocks In Focus: Oil and gas ancillary stocks such as Jindal Drilling, Dolphin Offshore Enterprises, Aegis Logistics, Deep Industries and Asian Energy Services were under pressure in trade on Monday, with the stocks falling up to 9.5%.
Individually, Dolphin Offshore Enterprises was among the biggest losers, dropping 9.48% to hit an intraday low of Rs 556.55 per share.
Around 5,021 shares worth Rs 29.63 lakh changed hands on the BSE, while 0.45 lakh shares worth Rs 2.5 crore were traded on the NSE.
Aegis Logistics fell as much as 3.69% to an intraday low of Rs 1,242 per share. The stock saw trading volumes of around 0.23 lakh shares worth Rs 2.94 crore on the BSE and 2.02 lakh shares worth Rs 25.6 crore on the NSE.
Deep Industries declined 2.2% to hit an intraday low of Rs 660 per share. Around 4,876 shares worth Rs 32.60 lakh changed hands on the BSE, while 0.87 lakh shares worth Rs 5.79 crore were traded on the NSE.
Asian Energy Services dropped 1.62% to hit an intraday low of Rs 472.95 per share. Around 2,198 shares worth Rs 10.52 lakh were traded on the BSE, while 0.67 lakh shares worth Rs 3.2 crore changed hands on the NSE.
Jindal Drilling and Industries fell 1.06% to an intraday low of Rs 621.85 per share.
Around 3,561 shares worth Rs 22.39 lakh changed hands on the BSE, while 0.58 lakh shares worth Rs 3.68 crore were traded on the NSE.
ONGC Explores Drillship Acquisition, JV
Separately, state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is exploring the acquisition of deepwater drillships or the formation of a joint venture to secure dedicated drilling capacity as it steps up offshore exploration under its Mission Samudra Manthan programme, according to reports.
ONGC has issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) to appoint a specialist global offshore rig-broking consultant to identify potential drillship owners or counterparties, assess assets and valuations, and support negotiations for a possible ownership or JV arrangement.
The initiative is aimed at creating dedicated, priority-access deepwater drillship capacity for Mission Samudra Manthan, according to the EOI.
The Union Cabinet last month approved the Rs 84,084-crore Samudra Manthan, or National Offshore Exploration Scheme, with the programme running through 2030-31.
The scheme is aimed at accelerating exploration of India's offshore oil and gas resources, particularly in deepwater and ultra-deepwater areas. It includes financial support of up to 50% of the cost of deepwater exploration wells, subject to a cap of Rs 675 crore per well, along with plans for 60 deepwater exploration wells, seismic surveys and common offshore production and evacuation infrastructure.
ONGC's EOI specifically seeks market intelligence on drillship owners and contractors with deepwater-capable assets or newbuild capacity, including rigs rated for water depths of 1,500 metres or more.
The EOI does not specify the number, type or cost of drillships ONGC may ultimately seek to acquire.
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