Oil & Natural Gas Corporation
Arun Kumar Singh, former chairman of oil refining and marketing company BPCL, was on Wednesday appointed as chairman of ONGC — the first instance of a retired person being appointed as the head of a Maharatna PSU.
The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) first intimated the decision of the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Soon after, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas issued an order appointing Singh as chairman of ONGC for three years and wasting no time he took charge, holding the first video conference with board members from Mumbai.
The petroleum ministry in a statement said besides the appointment of Singh as chairman, board-level changes have been effected by the creation of a post of Director (Production) by merging the current posts of Director (Onshore) and Director (Offshore).
A post of Director (Strategy and Corporate Affairs) has been created. These two changes will be effective from March 1, 2023.
“The restructuring of the Board of ONGC has been approved in the context of emerging trends in the energy sector and national energy priorities,” it said.
The medium and long-term strategic goals of ONGC require it to deliver in respect of enhanced production, increased exploration with an emphasis on technology and pace of implementation, partnership with reputed sectoral firms to leverage best in class technology, efficient and engaged management of JVs, the ministry said.
The revamped board, it said, is expected to “play a pivotal role in these tasks and work towards realising synergies and ensuring enhanced collaboration within the organisation and also relevant external stakeholders.”
“The ACC has approved the proposal of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas for appointment of Arun Kumar Singh, ex-CMD, BPCL as Chairman, ONGC for a three-year tenure with effect from the date of his assumption of charge of the post,” the DoPT order said.
PTI first reported of Singh’s appointment on November 17. Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is India’s top oil and gas producer.
ONGC has been without a full-time head since April 2021. It was headed by a chairman and managing director but in case of Singh, 60, the order states he has been appointed as chairman.
It is unclear if the post is being split and a managing director would also be appointed.
In a stock exchange filing, ONGC said “Singh has been appointed chairman of the company by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas vide a letter dated December 7, 2022 for a period of three years with effect from the date of assumption of charge or until further orders, whichever is earlier.” “Singh has assumed charge of the post of chairman on December 7, 2022,” it added.
A mechanical engineer from National Institute of Technology, Patna, Singh was Director (Marketing) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) from October 2018 to September 2021, after which he was elevated as chairman and managing director of the company.
Singh retired as BPCL head 13 months later in October 2022.
A search-cum-selection committee, constituted by the oil ministry, zeroed in on Singh after interviewing six candidates on August 27.
Singh was already selected to head the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) before the August 27 interviews.
In his nearly 38 years of experience in oil and gas industry, he has headed business units and entities in BPCL such as retail, LPG, pipelines and supply chain optimization.
He also held the position of President (Africa & Australasia) in Bharat PetroResources Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BPCL, engaged in exploration of oil and gas, largely overseas, according to information available on BPCL website.
ONGC is without a regular chairman and managing director since April 2021 and the senior most director on the board has been entrusted with the additional charge. Since then, the firm has seen a record three interim heads.
Singh became eligible for consideration for the job after the oil ministry relaxed age-related criteria.
Eligibility criteria for a board-level position at the PSU provide an internal candidate (applicant from within the PSU) should not be more than 58 years of age on the date of the vacancy. The maximum age for external candidates is 57 years on the date of the vacancy.
The ministry changed it to state that any candidate to be eligible for consideration should not be more than 60 years of age on the date of occurrence of the vacancy, according to the ministry’s office memorandum sent to DoPT on June 17. The vacancy arose on March 31, 2021.
This is the first ever instance of a retired person being appointed as a chairman of a Maharatna company.
None of the ONGC’s existing directors or the acting chairpersons, who had become eligible for the job after the ministry relaxed the eligibility criteria, were considered fit for the position, sources said.