Government Plans to Ease Foreign Investment in Oil, Gas Sector
With foreign investment almost drying up in India's oil and gas sector, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday promised an overhaul to make policies predictable, transparent and fair to investors.
Three years of policy paralysis and regulatory policy uncertainty over issues such as natural gas pricing had led to companies deferring their investments, resulting in domestic production stagnating.
In his opening remarks at the ministerial session of the World Petroleum Congress in Moscow on Tuesday, Mr Pradhan said the Narendra Modi government "intends to bring in policies which would ease the way for large foreign investments in the oil and gas sector".
Stating that there was an urgent need to facilitate an increase in oil and gas production, he said his ministry was in the process of ushering in a new exploration and production policy after amending the existing New Exploration Licencing Policy (NELP).
"The priority of the government led by Modi would be to put in place transparent systems and time-bound delivery of government services," he said.
"Creation of a policy environment which is predictable, transparent and fair would be a very important action. Our motto is 'Minimum Government & Maximum Governance'," he said.
The ministry proposes to replace NELP with a uniform licensing policy to facilitate production of all forms of hydrocarbons - from oil to shale gas - under a single policy regime.
The next round of oil and gas block auctions will be offered with all statutory clearances that will derisk exploration activities to some extent.
More than 1,48,000 square kilometres of exploration acreage has been identified for auction under the 10th round of NELP, an official statement said.
"India is at a critical stage of development and the new government led by Narendra Modi is giving it the much-needed impetus for further growth," Mr Pradhan said.
India consumes about 4.5 per cent of the world's primary energy and ranks fourth globally in energy consumption, making it imperative for steps to be taken to facilitate availability of energy for every single person, thereby ensuring inclusive growth, he said.
The World Petroleum Congress, the 'kumbh' of the oil and gas sector, is held every three years. The theme of the 21st Congress, being held in Moscow from June 15 to 19, is 'Responsibly Energising a Growing World'.
-
Signature Play: The Classic Cocktail Is Dead. Or Is It?
Classic cocktails are disappearing from India's cocktail menus. But they're still being ordered, taught to bartenders and borrowed from. So, who's really having the last drink?
-
A New Samvat Wishlist: Inclusive Prosperity And Human Development
India has strengthened its economic foundations through infrastructure, digital access and enterprise. Its next growth chapter must deepen productivity, create better livelihoods and widen participation in prosperity.
-
Love, Sex Aur Dhokha: The Audacious Plot To Spy On Jensen Huang
A Taipei dinner, a Singapore chip buyer and a suspected Chinese asset: inside the alleged spy operation that got close to NVIDIA's Jensen Huang.
-
Ten Things I Learnt This Samvat
Patience can be a trap. Cheap stocks can stay cheap. Leverage can wipe you out. What did Samvat 2082 teach us? Niraj Shah writes on 10 lessons from the year gone by.
-
Talking Points This Week: Tech Nerves, FII Buying, And A Faraway Banking Shock
The global markets are not shining this Diwali. The exception in the large markets is, India.
-
Midterm Rally Lasted A Day. The Hard Reality Of A Divided US May Last Two Years | Opinion
Between a contested AI boom, a debt ceiling that arrives in 2027 and a president with every incentive to act alone, the next two years may prove more volatile than the first day's rally suggests.
-
Blue Wave Will Derail the AI Trade but Won't Dismantle the AI Era | Unhedged Position
The Democrats' sweep of the US Congress will see politics collide with economic forces both over the long and short term.
-
It's Time To Take The GST Council's Bet On Trust Global
Payment records can prove India's services exports, and clear, proportionate rules can bring foreign digital sellers into the tax net.
-
Opinion | India at 38: From Innovation Overperformer to Innovation Powerhouse
India now has 453 VC-backed deep science startups, 18 of them late-stage, after 117 percent growth since 2020. Laurus Labs, at USD 9.3 billion, is the most valuable deep science company in any middle-income economy outside China.
