ONGC Start-up Fund

ONGC Start-Up Fund is a SEBI-registered Category I Alternative Investment Fund managed directly by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), India's largest crude oil and gas exploration and production company. The fund was launched on 14 August 2016 — ONGC's Diamond Jubilee year — as a corporate venture capital initiative to foster, nurture, and incubate innovative ideas in the energy sector. ONGC serves as both the sponsor and the Investment Manager of the fund, which is structured as a trust under the Indian Trust Act, 1882, with a total corpus of INR 101 crore (ONGC: INR 100 crore, MRPL: INR 1 crore). The fund is aligned with the Government of India's Startup India initiative and focuses exclusively on startups in the oil, gas, and energy sectors. ONGC partnered with SINE (Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship) at IIT Bombay as its incubation partner. The fund provides not only seed capital but also the full support chain — hand-holding, mentoring, market linkage, and follow-up. Portfolio companies include Vayuguard Climate Tech, Sagar Defence Engineering, String Bio, WellRx Technologies, and Pepfuels, spanning energy, deep-tech, specialty chemicals, and cleantech.

ONGC Start-Up Fund supports innovative ideas, products, processes, and services aimed at increasing the contribution of fresh, implementable ideas in the oil, gas, and energy sector. The fund provides the full support chain including seed capital, incubation, mentoring, and market linkage. It is committed to supporting entrepreneurship among India's youth and fostering business start-ups in the energy sector that align with the Startup India mission.