The government has formed a four-member panel of secretaries to suggest a new gas pricing mechanism.
Iran on Thursday ordered a release of an Indian tanker seized by it in Persian Gulf while carrying crude from Basrah in Iraq and taken to its Bandar Abbas Port 24 days ago.
Submits revised proposal to CCI as Birla Corp deal fails
As the government began consultations with stakeholders on raising gas prices, gas producers and consumers met a committee of secretaries separately with their pleas on the issue.
Sources said the Cabinet had in December last year stipulated that the new gas rate will apply to all producers excepting eastern offshore KG-D6 block where the contractor, which is fighting government against levying penalties for output shortfall, will have to give bank guarantees equivalent to the incremental revenue it would get from the new rates.
Government has put on auction the gas discovery area it snatched from Reliance Industries in KG-D6 block and the field that Cairn India is seeking to regain around its Rajasthan block.
The government on Thursday decided to join the arbitration initiated by Reliance Industries and its partners over delay in revision of natural gas prices, and named former Supreme Court judge G S Singhvi as its arbitrator.
As CAG found Reliance Industries was being favoured in gas exploration deal to the government's detriment, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the then top auditor Vinod Rai that audit should not hurt the private sector and RIL was one of the biggest and most respected.
RIL's Dhirubhai-34, or R-Cluster field, in the flagging KG-D6 block was to produce about 13 million standard cubic metres per day of gas, equivalent to present day output from D1&D3 as well as MA fields, by 2017-18.
The government had allowed companies in February last year to launch probe missions to find more oil and gas within already-producing areas.
CAG had in its previous reports slammed Oil Ministry and its technical arm DGH for not exercising enough control and vigil over KG-D6 block.
Mayank Ashar, managing director and chief executive officer, Cair India, says the reform momentum should continue and the industry should do its part too.
A bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam sought response from CBI on the petition filed by Civil society members including former Cabinet Secretary T S R Subramanian and ex-Naval chief Admiral L Ramdas seeking probe by the agency in the alleged 'collusion between RIL and the political establishment'.
The pricing and marketing freedom for exploitation would be capped by a ceiling price.
A Texas company will submit a report by June on whether a company controlled by RIL 'stole' natural gas from the wells where ONGC is contracted to operate in the KG basin, as alleged by ONGC.
Pooling will also kick-start projects of Reliance Power, Torrent, Lanco.
The Supreme Court on Friday granted six weeks time to Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) to respond to the final CAG report which found alleged irregularities including in payments made to the contractors on drilling of D6 wells at the Krishna-Godavari basin.
Companies to hold rates in Delhi until new government is formed.
Sri Lanka's Minister for Economic Development, Basil Rajapakse's visit to New Delhi on Thursday for what is described as "regular high level consultations" comes shortly before a scheduled meeting of a Parliamentary Select Committee for Constitutional Amendments on July 9.
The Oil Ministry is seeking Cabinet nod to allow Reliance Industries to retain three gas discoveries worth $1.45 billion in the eastern offshore KG-D6 block even after expiry of timelines.
The committee said whatever benefit RIL received in terms of the migrated gas is liable to be returned to the government.
Reliance Industries on Friday hit out at Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) for suing it over KG gas dispute, saying some elements in the state-owned firm may be "misleading" the chairman D K Sarraf to hide their failure in developing the discoveries made over 13 years.
Indore's Ranjeet Singh moonwalks to control the traffic with his iron will and dance moves!
