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India is planning to secure uninterrupted gas supplies from the Gulf through a direct deep-sea pipeline from Oman, according to a new report.
The project, estimated to cost up to $4.8 billion, is expected to take five to seven years to build but has yet to receive government clearance, the Economic Times reported, quoting an unnamed petroleum ministry official.
The ministry may entrust state-run GAIL, Engineers India and Indian Oil Corporation with preparing a detailed feasibility report, the report said.
The government is currently working on a pre-feasibility study submitted by The South Asia Gas Enterprise (SAGE), a New Delhi-based private-sector consortium.
A positive detailed feasibility report will pave the way for formal government-level negotiations with Oman on gas supply, financing and project execution.
The proposed Middle East-India Deep-water Pipeline (MEIDP) will stretch 2,000 kilometres under the Arabian Sea, connecting Oman directly to the Gujarat coast. It will deliver around 31 million standard cubic metres per day (mmscmd) of natural gas.
The route will be designed to pass through the Arabian Sea via Oman and the UAE, avoiding geopolitically sensitive regions. It would allow India to access gas from Oman, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Qatar, a region holding 2,500 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves.
The pipeline could run at depths of up to 3,450 metres, making it one of the deepest undersea pipelines ever attempted globally, the report said.
In March 2024, Zawya Projects had reported that the project was expected to move to Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) stage by end-2024.
India’s current consumption stands at roughly 190-195 mmscmd and is projected to reach nearly 290-300 mmscmd by 2030.
In January 2026, UAE's EtihadWE had invited consulting firms to register their interest in participating in a tender for a techno-economic feasibility study of a proposed UAE–India undersea power interconnector.
(Writing by P Deol; Editing by Anoop Menon)
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