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Published: October 31, 2026
Updated: October 31, 2026

Sunil Kumar — New ONGC chief

Helming ONGC at time of global turmoil: His challenge India’s energy security

The appointments committee of the Cabinet has cleared ONGC Executive Director Sunil Kumar for the top post. He will take charge on or after December 7, 2026, a day after current Chairman Arun Kumar Singh’s extended tenure ends.

This decision ends months of intense speculation around a further extension for Mr Singh and the list of shortlisted candidates. Significantly, Mr Kumar becomes the first Executive Director in ONGC’s history to be elevated directly to the Chairman’s post. Previous chiefs usually came from board-level positions. The search-cum-selection committee of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas interviewed candidates from within and outside ONGC before recommending him.

According to the official order, Mr Kumar will serve until his superannuation on December 31, 2028, and then continue on a contractual basis for a combined tenure of three years, or until further orders.

O.N.G.C. INSIDER

Sunil Kumar is a 58-year-old petroleum engineer with more than three decades of experience within ONGC. He joined the company in 1991 as an Assistant Executive Engineer (Production) in Assam. A graduate in petroleum engineering from the Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad (now IIT-ISM, Dhanbad), he later completed a postgraduate management programme specialising in marketing and finance from the Management Development Institute, Gurgaon.

During his career, Mr Kumar played a key role in planning and executing ONGC’s first deep-water project — Vasistha & S1 — on the east coast. He also led India’s largest shallow-water subsea project, overseeing the drilling, completion and production start-up of 11 subsea wells.

Most recently, he has been serving as Executive Director and Asset Manager of ONGC’s Mehsana Asset in Gujarat (since January 2025), and he earlier handled important offshore work in the Krishna-Godavari basin.

Mr Kumar steps in at a time when ONGC faces pressure to boost domestic oil and gas output from ageing fields, navigate volatile global energy markets, and balance traditional production with energy transition.

PASSING THE BATON

Under outgoing Chairman Arun Kumar Singh, the company saw improved profits, revised gas pricing benefits, and a technical partnership with BP for Mumbai High. Now, the focus shifts to how the new internal leader will take those efforts forward.

In the midst of long-continuing geopolitical turbulence coupled with tremendous uncertainty and unclarity, ONGC’s role has become highly important and decisive from the energy security viewpoint. The government has realised this and is looking forward to ONGC taking a lead role in creating a new energy landscape for the country.

In other words, Mr Kumar’s 3-year tenure is going to be crucial because ONGC is the country’s single biggest and premier oil producer, with the largest oil and gas assets under its fold. Hence, under his leadership, a substantial and sustainable production increase is not only desirable and the need of the hour, but is also essential to make India move quickly towards energy self-reliance.