As the government looks to shore up its revenue without hurting economic growth, reimposing import duty on crude oil presents a viable alternative in the Budget 2016-17 to be presented on February 29, the sources said.

RIL began gas production from KG-D6 block in April 2009 while ONGC is yet to begin development work on gas fields in G-4 that were discovered more than 12 years back.

ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas investment arm of the state explorer, signed agreements in Moscow to buy stake in the oil field in East Siberia for $1.35 bn.

With the Sensex trading in choppy waters on Wednesday here are the five stocks that remained in news today.

With volatile market conditions, the government has so far this fiscal been able to divest 5 per cent stake each in REC and PFC.

ONGC produces 33 million standard cubic meters per day of natural gas from the Bassein field in the western offshore.

Reliance Industries posteda consolidated net profit of Rs 23,566 crore in the 2014-15 fiscal.

The government needs to complete some major deals to deliver on a Budget promise to trim the fiscal deficit to a seven-year low by the end of the year in March.

The stake sale, which is worth US $286 million at the scrip's closing level on Wednesday, would mark the first stake sale under the new government.

Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) has seen profits decline due to the sale of crude oil to other state-owned refiners at discounted rates.

Its board approved investments of over Rs 10,600 crore($1.71 billion) to boost production from two western offshore formations.

\"In the first year, when people expect lot of reforms and there is lot of popular support behind the reform process, it is more easily possible,\" FM Arun Jaitley said.

The government plans to sell 42.77 crore shares, or five per cent of its stake in ONGC worth Rs 17,400 crore at current prices, this fiscal. Commenting on it, ONGC said that any disinvestment at this stage may not realise the true potential/value of the company shares.

The company's stock opened the day on a higher note and further gained 4.24 per cent to Rs 424.80 - its 52-week high on the BSE. On the NSE, the scrip rose by 4.17 per cent to touch its one year high of Rs 425.

Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and OIL bought 5 per cent stake each at Rs 220 per share, sources privy to the development said.

An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) headed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram had on February 28 decided to sell the stake in IOC, the nation's largest oil firm, at a discount of 10 per cent through an off-market deal.

The board of Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), which is to buy an equal number of shares in IOC, is yet to meet on the issue.

ONGC Videsh (OVL) and Oil India will split equally the 10 per cent stake they acquired in a giant Mozambique gas field from Videocon Group for $2.475 billion.

Sources say buying the West Bengal government's stake in Haldia Petrochemicals makes strategic sense for IOC as it has a significant stake in the company and also supplies feedstock naphtha to it.

The West Bengal government has invited price bid for sale of its 31 per cent stake on October 7. RIL is considered frontrunner for buying the stake. It may however face a formidable competition from gas utility GAIL India which has teamed up with explorer Oil India.