India investing in offshore reserves

NEW DELHI, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- India's oil and gas corporation said Friday it was planning to spend just over $5 billion to develop reserves locked in deep national waters.

The company said through its official Twitter account it was looking to develop a cluster of two developments off the nation's east coast over the next four years.

ONGC to invest ₹340,120 mn over next four years for development of Cluster 2 of #Deepwater NELP block KG-DWN-98/2 in East coast of #India pic.twitter.com/bVVD7UQN11

— ONGC (@ONGC_) September 30, 2016

According to industry estimates, India's demand for oil grew by almost 7 percent over last year. The government, meanwhile, is moving to potentially merge state oil companies into one conglomerate.

The recent recovery in crude oil prices could expose the Indian economy to external risks. A recent profile from the International Monetary Fund said deflation in India has been "dramatic," though its growth rate of 7.5 percent remains higher than that of even China's.

Moody's Investors Service said last month the economy of energy-hungry India is on pace for steady growth that outpaces the global economy, though gains are moderating.

From the perspective of Moody's, inflation remains steady enough and efforts aimed at improving the business climate are supportive of growth.