Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules, 2025 amended

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules, 2025, were recently amended to enable ease of doing business and operations. Under this, the lessees will have the right to carry out all types of mineral oil operations under one petroleum lease, with the broader spectrum of rights under one petroleum lease. They will also be permitted to carry out decarbonisation and comprehensive energy projects at oilfields. The application for the grant of a petroleum lease will be decided within 180 days. The framework also permits long-term leases of up to 30 years, which can also be extended up to the economic life of the field, facilitating the lessee to undertake planned investment decisions. The rules also mandate the submission of a reduction plan comprising time-bound reduction targets and milestones to achieve zero gas flaring, and for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, among other reforms. The move is in line with efforts to strengthen infrastructure for domestic exploration and production of hydrocarbons.