INDIA: Grey grabs oil & gas contract in four-way review

The Government-owned body is due to make an initial public offering in early March, set to be the largest IPO in Indian history and expected to raise some US$2.5 billion.

ONGC is said to have budgeted $7.5 million on a one-month spree on TV and print. Local agency Concept will handle the financial part of the IPO campaign, scheduled to begin as soon as the corporate campaign runs its course.

Subir Raha, managing director of ONGC said: "Apart from the run-up to the IPO, the brief is to inform the masses of what ONGC is all about. It is one of India's most valuable companies, and they aren't fully informed about it."

Nirvik Singh, chairman of Grey Global Group, India added: "The brief from the client was to portray the 'bigness' of the corporation on different parameters."

The agency has chosen to do that by emphasising the great technological strides that ONGC is making in the oil and gas sector. "We are talking of the professionalism of this public sector unit with strong fundamentals, and how people perceive it as one of the most valued corporations in India," said Singh.