The 29th Energy Technology Meet (ETM-2026) began on Tuesday, October 27, at the ONGC Advanced Training Institute in Goa, where it was inaugurated by Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. The three-day meet, running until October 29, is organised by the Centre for High Technology (CHT) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and co-hosted by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), with the theme “Accelerating Energy Innovation: From Research to Commercialisation”, according to the Press Information Bureau (PIB).

Source: PIB via CareerView24

At the meet, Puri unveiled the concept of a National Hydrocarbon Technology Hub (NHTH) — a dedicated coordination body designed to plug the gap between oil-and-gas research, domestic startups, industry and academia, Nation Press reported. As outlined, the hub will coordinate upstream and downstream technology development, oversee research-and-development reviews and drive an innovation ecosystem across institutions. At the centre of the proposal is the expansion of the existing Centre for High Technology, with the ministry proposing to widen the CHT's mandate and fold its functions into the broader hub architecture. Puri framed the announcement within Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Aatmanirbhar Bharat push for energy self-reliance.

Source: Nation Press

67%Share of India's LPG imports from the US
300 MMTPARefining capacity target by 2030
267 MMTPARefining capacity now, up from 215 MMTPA
41Crude sourcing countries, up from 27

US accounts for 67% of India's LPG imports, Puri says

Puri said the United States accounts for 67% of India's LPG imports and that domestic refining capacity will hit 300 MMTPA by 2030, ANI reported. Over the past decade, he said, India diversified crude sourcing from 27 to 41 countries, built 5.33 million tonnes of strategic reserves, raised refining capacity from 215 to 267 MMTPA, expanded fuel outlets from about 52,000 to over 100,000, increased LPG import terminals from 11 to 22, and strengthened LPG security by raising domestic production from around 34,000 tonnes a day to 55,000 tonnes a day.

Source: ANI via DevDiscourse

The minister also noted that Samudra Manthan is a major push to unlock India's offshore hydrocarbon potential, including opening nearly 1 million square kilometres of previously designated “No-Go” areas for exploration, ANI reported. In a fireside chat at the Goa meet, Puri discussed India's energy priorities, including energy security, affordability, the energy transition and LPG supply diversification, Aizgoa News reported.

Source: Aizgoa News

The meet brings together representatives from renewable energy, mobility, oil and gas, petrochemicals, research institutions, consulting firms and engineering companies, the PIB said, with technology areas including green hydrogen, sustainable aviation fuel, carbon capture, crude-to-chemicals, biofuels and gas-based energy.