More Stories

Informist, Thursday, Jul. 23, 2026

 

Please click here to read all liners published on this story

--Govt to HC Bench on Vedanta plea: ONGC has taken over ops of CB-OS/2 Block 
--CONTEXT: Vedanta plea vs govt refusal to extend contract for CB-OS/2 Block
--CONTEXT: HC single judge Bench rejected Vedanta plea in CB-OS/2 Block case 
--CONTEXT: Vedanta challenged HC's single judge order before division Bench 
--HC Bench refuses urgent relief to Vedanta for status quo on CB-OS/2 Block
--HC Bench to hear Vedanta plea against govt in CB-OS/2 Block case on Monday 
 

 

NEW DELHI – The division bench of the Delhi High Court Thursday refused urgent relief to Vedanta Ltd. seeking status quo on the operation of the CB-OS/2 Block on the western coast. Listing Vedanta's plea for hearing on Monday, the division bench said that if needed, it will put the clock back, but it will only pass an interim order after hearing both the government and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on Monday.

 

Vedanta has moved the division bench against its single judge's order upholding the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas' refusal to extend the production sharing contract for the CB-OS/2 Block on the western coast to Vedanta. The single judge had upheld the oil ministry's direction to Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd. to immediately take over the assets and operations of the CB-OS/2 Block.

 

Appearing for the oil ministry, Attorney General for India R. Venkataramani said after the single judge's verdict, ONGC has taken over the operations of the CB-OS/2 Block in entirety, and there is no question of status quo now. However, contradicting the ministry's claim, Vedanta's counsel Mukul Rohatgi said ONGC had not taken over the block and Vedanta was still operating it. Whatever exists as of today, let it continue, requested Rohatgi. 

 

Rohatgi said the contract between the ministry and Vedanta was signed in 1998 and till 2025 the company was a "good boy" and got five extensions. However, suddenly the ministry refused an extension even without hearing Vedanta, said Rohatgi. Vedanta is operating on oil blocks in other parts of India and it is not a "fly-by-night" operator, he said. 

 

"Can an extension be claimed as a matter of right?" the Bench of Justice Dinesh Mehta and Justice Rajneesh Kumar Gupta asked. The division bench questioned whether the ministry had given any assurance to Vedanta on giving an extension. Rohatgi said that Vedanta was claiming extension as a matter of right.

 

The government had issued this policy for extension, which was not there. It is a statutory policy, Rohatgi said. Vedanta has a statutory right to apply under the policy, he said, adding the company has a statutory expectation from the government. 

 

The production sharing contract for the block was entered into between the Centre, ONGC, Tata Petrodyne Ltd. and Cairn Energy India Pty. Ltd., a division of Vedanta, in 1998. Initially, the term of the contract was 25 years, which was extended from time to time. However, the government refused to extend the contract on the grounds that the company had unilaterally deducted from the Centre's share of profit petroleum under the contract the amount of special additional excise duty that Vedanta was liable to pay to the Central Excise Department. 

 

The ministry had asked Vedanta to cease and desist from carrying out any further petroleum operations on the block and immediately hand over its custody and possession to ONGC. The Centre had said it was purely an interim measure to maintain continuity of petroleum operations in public interest and safeguard petroleum reserves until the block was awarded to another party. 

 

The CB-OS/2 Block is an offshore oil and gas block on India's western coast. It was awarded to the contractors in 1998 under a Pre-New Exploration Licensing Policy production sharing contract. The block, consisting of the Lakhsmi and Gauri fields, is currently producing 3,400 barrels of oil and 340,000 standard cubic metres of gas per day.

 

In its order, the single judge said Vedanta, while unilaterally deducting the Centre's share of profit petroleum, had used India's natural resources for its own benefit rather than for the interest of the country. In doing so, it has breached the obligations under the public trust doctrine, which in turn flow from the Constitution of India, said the court. 

 

The government cannot be held ransom to the whims of a private company, which, as per its fancies, tramples upon the Centre's share, the single judge said. Challenging the single judge’s order, Vedanta moved the division bench.

 

Thursday, shares of Vedanta ended 0.9% higher at INR 264.60 on the National Stock Exchange, and shares of ONGC closed 0.2% higher at INR 252.37.  End   

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

 

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd. by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt. Ltd.

 

Informist Media Tel +91 (11) 4220-1000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

 

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.