The Delhi high court has rejected a government challenge to an arbitration panel award that had ruled in favour of Reliance Industries Ltd in a dispute over gas migration from fields operated by state-owned ONGC in the KG basin. The government had slapped a provisional penalty of $1.55 billion on Reliance for "unjust enrichment" from gas migrating from the ONGC-operated KG-D5 block to the private firm's adjoining KG-D6 area. It had sought $175 million in additional profit petroleum from Reliance and its UK partner BP Plc.
Saudi Arabia-based Jazira Enterprises has sought marketing rights to retail petrol and diesel in all major districts in the country.
Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar will visit Pakistan from June 3 to boost energy ties and discuss the $4.16 billion Iran-India gas pipeline project.\n\n
The government is likely to decide this week on a hike of Rs 2 to Rs 3 a litre in the prices of petrol and diesel, but spare kerosene and cooking gas prices from any increase.
India is estimated to spend $1.36 billion more a year for every one dollar a barrel increase in crude oil prices, says Subhayan Chakraborty.
Meanwhile, Uttarakhand, Kerala and Delhi have already announced cut in value added tax on petrol.
The interlocutory application filed on Tuesday made it clear that $4.20 per mmBtu price approved by the government for RIL's KG-D6 gas was without prejudice to the state-run firm's case seeking the fuel from the Mukesh Ambani-run company at $2.34 per mmBtu price committed in 2004.
RIL's KG basin started pumping gas in April and is currently producing 37-38 mscmd.
If Raha's resistance to the petroleum ministry's interference turns into a plebiscite at the firm's AGM on Sept 21, the ministry may vote for his ouster.
The Government of India has decided to launch a massive rural public works scheme, 'Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan', to "empower and provide livelihood opportunities to the returnee migrant workers and rural citizens". Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch this scheme on June 20 through video conference in the presence of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.
Cairn India had written to the petroleum ministry about its plans for the block, said a person close to the development.
With international crude oil prices dipping to last year's levels, the government has put the issue of cutting motor and cooking fuel prices back on the agenda to tame inflation, two senior oil ministry officials have said.
The petroleum ministry has sought legal advice on payment of production tax by Cairn Energy of the UK on the crude oil it plans to produce from the Barmer district discovery in Rajasthan.
With the government making a distinction between the privately-run Reliance Natural Resources Ltd and the government-run NTPC Ltd in relation with the gas dispute with Reliance Industries Ltd, the ministry of power is likely to take up NTPC's case with the Empowered Group of Ministers.
The petroleum ministry has said Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is not right in seeking an out-of-turn rise in the price of natural gas produced from the KG-D6 fields and asserted the $4.205 per million British thermal unit (mBtu) rate will prevail unless pricing formula is changed.
The government cleared the proposal despite opposition from the petroleum ministry, which says this is not the right time for divestment as the sector is moving from trade parity to export parity pricing.
India's oil product consumption, an indicator of the state of economy, rose a massive 10.1 per cent in August to 7.5 million tonnes on back of increased demand for petrol and diesel.
Reliance Industries and Essar Oil are keen on buying crude oil from Cairn India's Rajasthan fields even as the petroleum ministry struggles to find takers of the nation's most prolific oil discovery among public sector firms.
The Group of Ministers, set up to look into the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, met on Monday for discussion with Union ministry secretary-level officers.
The continuation of the tax holiday will come as a relief to oil and gas companies, which have already invested huge money in exploration of hydrocarbons. It will also help the petroleum ministry, which has been promising the tax holiday while marketing the auction of oil and gas block under the New Exploration and Licensing Policy.
It is expected to take a similar stand at the Mumbai and Delhi high courts, where Welspun Maxsteel, Ispat Industries and Essar Steel have challenged the petroleum ministry's decision to divert KG-D6s supply from steel and petrochemicals to power and fertiliser.
Modi government plans to set up a committee of five or six chief ministers to suggest ways to promote digitisation.
Divestment Minister Arun Shourie said on Tuesday that his ministry had furnished all the facts to Attorney General for getting his opinion on the legal aspects of privatising public sector oil company, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation.
Petroleum Ministry has sought help from Law Ministry in resolving the Ambani demerger issue over the production of gas from KG fields.
Time opportune before state polls as inflation is moderating.
The cabinet committee on economic affairs will meet this evening to decide on the prices of petrol, diesel, LPG and kerosene, petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said.
Having set an ambitious target for capacity addition, the power ministry on Monday sought to push ahead with the agenda seeking regulators for coal and petroleum sectors even as it criticised public sector power companies
The ministry of finance is likely to assume crude oil price to remain within $85 per barrel while estimating subsidies for the Interim Budget 2024-25 (FY25), to be presented on February 1. Brent crude prices moved up on Thursday, ending at $78.9 per barrel. Crude oil and cooking gas prices, which move in tandem, impact fertiliser and cooking gas subsidies, constituting 53 per cent of the government's total subsidies.
It added this wasn't aimed at benefiting Reliance Industries Ltd alone.
The Congress core group is meeting later in the evening where the implementation of Kirit Parikh Committee report on fuel pricing reforms may be discussed.
