Under fire on the gas pricing issue, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Veerappa Moily on Friday took everyone by surprise claiming India was “floating in oil and gas” and every successive petroleum minister stood threatened by “import lobbies” not to take decisions aimed at cutting down India’s import of petroleum products. Interestingly, Mr. Moily refrained from naming the lobbies that are working against the interests of the country or are threatening the successive petroleum ministers. India, which imports around 80 per cent of oil and gas needs, has been constantly trying to seek investments from domestic and foreign investors in the oil and gas sector. However, Mr. Moily’s claim of the country full of oil and gas assets and bureaucrats were to be blamed for the delays in decision-making is seen by many as an attempt to ward off criticism about his siding with a certain corporate house on the gas pricing issue. Interestingly, the public sector oil marketing companies are major importers of oil and gas. “I am telling you with all sense of responsibility that we are floating in oil and gas in this country. We are not exploring it but instead put every obstruction not to do it. There are delays caused by the bureaucrats in decision-making and there are lobbies which don’t want us to stop imports. There are some lobbies who threaten every successive petroleum minister against taking decisions to cut down imports,” Mr. Moily said in New Delhi. On being repeatedly asked about the lobbies, Mr. Moily said history will speak about it. It is for you to judge. “Oil and gas imports will keep on rising if domestic production is not incentivised through right pricing policy. This will be detriment to the interests of the country. We are challenged by the vagaries of international price,” he remarked. Stating that revision of gas price was aimed at reviving investor sentiment, Mr. Moily said the sentiment has been quite low for the last four to five years and the government has to find the right price to attract investments. Interestingly, even before the Cabinet has discussed the matter, which is confidential in nature, Mr. Moily went public stating that he had proposed to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) the raising of domestic gas prices from current $4.2 per million British thermal unit to $6.775. Asked about the allegations by CPI MP, Gurudas Dasgupta that the gas price hike was meant to benefit Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL), he said, the Petroleum Ministry was open to any solution that will help unshackle the present grid of non-investment-no-production and increased imports. “I had called Mr. Dasgupta but he is not prepared to come for a discussion. But I can reassure Mr. Dasgupta or whosoever is there in the market, all the criticism should be there, but it should not get personal. I am open to all suggestions,’’ he added. Source : Thehindu
Posted on: Sat, 15 Jun 2013 15:19:53 +0000