ONGC Chairman calls for greater focus on tech, innovation; commits to fund and support startups
ONGC Chairman Arun Kumar Singh has called for increased investment in technology and innovation to bolster India's energy security and reduce import reliance. The company is launching an initiative to fund up to 30 energy-focused startups with a grant pool of ₹30 crore.
Why it matters
Strategic investment in energy technology is critical for India's economic stability and its transition toward more efficient, AI-driven resource management.
India needs to prioritise its resources towards technologies that address the country’s immediate and strategic energy requirements, said Arun Kumar Singh, Chairman & CEO, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), on Tuesday (September 8, 2026), while calling for a greater focus on technology, innovation and efficient deployment of resources to strengthen India’s energy security.
He was speaking at the MC²+ IGNITE Mumbai City Connect at IIT Bombay, which was organised by ONGC in association with MC²+ Ignite to identify start-ups which would be funded to undertake innovations in specified areas of the core energy sector.
Stating that India must become more efficient and innovative to address its energy requirements, he said there was a need to do things “fundamentally different” to strengthen energy security and reduce dependence on imports.
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