NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to facilitate close coordination and cooperation on the latter's ambitious AADHAR project, which is primarily aimed at curbing pilferage of PDS kerosene and domestic LPG.




As per the MoU, oil marketing companies IOCL, BPCL and HPCL will act as registrars for the UIDAI on behalf of the Ministry for implementation of the project.



The 12-digit unique number that the UIDAI will generate will be combined with the smart card project of the Ministry for distribution of PDS kerosene and domestic LPG through biometric identification of beneficiaries.

http://www.hindu.com/2010/07/31/stories/2010073166362000.htm

UIDAI chairman Nandan Nilekani said Rs.50 would be given to the oil companies for every enrolment done. At present, there were more than 11.5 crore LPG customers in the country and it is envisioned that by the year 2015, there would be 16 crore LPG customers.



“With focus on BPL families and village communities, this partnership will help in de-duplication and authentication,” he added.



According to a senior Ministry official, the de-duplication process and the online authentication that the UIDAI offered would enhance the efficiency of the oil companies in delivering services to the increasing customer base.



“The biometric smart card-based distribution of PDS SKO [superior kerosene oil] and LPG pilot project will be executed along with the Andhra Pradesh government. The initial pilots would be held in Hyderabad, Mysore and Tumkur. Selected blocks in Pune are also proposed to be covered under the pilot,” the official said.

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Chennai Petro sees 55-cr loss



Chennai Petroleum Corp on Wednesday reported a net loss of Rs. 55.31 crore in the quarter ended June 30 on lower refining margins. The Chennai-based firm had, in the April-June quarter of the previous fiscal, reported a net profit of 304.72 crore, according to the company's filing to the stock exchanges. The company earned $1.79 on turning every barrel of crude oil into fuel in the quarter against $6.88 per barrel gross refining margin in Q1 of 2009-10 fiscal. Net sales rose to 6,327.65 crore in Q1 this fiscal from 5,660.39 crore a year ago. CPCL, a unit of state-owned IndianOil, turned 2.326 million tonnes of crude oil into product in April-June this year against 2.685 million tonnes throughout a year ago.

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AHMEDABAD: Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) is learnt to have struck a huge cache of gas in the Cambay basin of Gujarat. GSPC, in a joint venture with Australian exploration & production (E&P) company Oilex, has found around 20-22 trillion cubic feet natural gas reserve, probably the biggest onshore gas find to date, sources in the Gujarat government told ET.




"The logs from data collected by drilling wells in the block show that we have probably run into 20-22 tcf of natural gas entrapped in the Cambay basin. However, it is geologically trapped gas in tight formation (difficult to extract commercially)," a state government official said on condition of anonymity. However, the corporation is not going to town with the discovery. A major reason behind the subdued excitement among the GSPC brass is the highly low recovery factor of its latest find.



An industry expert said: "It being tight gas, the operational expenses to recover this gas would be higher. Also, the quantity recoverable could be much lower. GSPC-Oilex would be more than happy to commercially recover even 2 tcf of this find." Another reason for GSPC underplaying the gas find could be traced to its much-hyped discovery of 20 tcf in the KG basin in June 2007. State chief minister Narendra Modi, who was in his election year, announced the discovery amid much fanfare, terming it as the biggest gas find in the country then.



However, the upstream hydrocarbon regulator, the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons contested the claims, and has till date ratified a gas find of just 2 tcf. A gas industry source in the know of events said, "Analysing tight gas is a difficult job. Oilex appointed three different consultants working in North America, and apparently all of them have confirmed that there is plenty of gas in the basin." The latest gas find by GSPC-Oilex is significant as it is onshore gas, which is relatively easier to recover and monitise. The DGH will have the final say for establishing the exact quantity of gas. COURTESY:ET


credit:http://www.bharatpetroleum.in/YourCorner/PetroDailyDetails.aspx?Pnewsid=P000028445

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BANGALORE, INDIA: MAG, machine tool and systems company serving the durable-goods industry worldwide with complete manufacturing solutions, has recently formed a new Renewable Energy business unit providing automation solutions for solar panel and wind turbine manufacturing.



The company shared that it will execute a turnkey contract to build India’s largest solar power plant for G S Power, construction for which will start this September and is scheduled to be completed in record time, said a press release.



Dr. Siegfried Schmalzried, head, Renewable Energy, MAG Europe, said, “The new renewable energy business is off to a strong start. We have already secured over 20 million Euros in contracts which represents an approximate 30 per cent share of our targeted market.”



"While our business unit is new, MAG is already firmly established in the renewable energy sector, having quietly built a worldwide leadership position in automated manufacturing systems for solar panels. We have supplied more than 30 automated production lines for solar panels in all regions of the world in the last five years and our systems have reduced manufacturing costs for solar panels to record lows,” he further added.



Eswari Prasad, president, MAG India, said, “The Indian solar PV industry has grown to 300 MW capacity in the last two years and is expected to touch 1000 MW of in capacity by 2012. The targets set by National Solar Mission are really challenging and it would be good learning curve for each and every one of us. MAG’s experience spans the entire Solar sector to include solutions for PV modules manufacturing (Crystalline Silicon or Thin Film) with ramp-up options and dedicated production support. We look forward to providing cost effective and efficient turnkey solutions from design to implementation of Solar power plants for Grid connected and roof top installations for off grid support”.



The company has supplied solutions ranging from semiautomatic modules to complete turnkey factories in all corners of the world for panels that utilize the latest materials technology.
Source: http://www.ciol.com/Semicon/Solar/PV/News-Reports/MAG-forms-renewable-energy-solutions-unit/139456/0/

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 Reliance Industries Ltd and Essar Oil  have joined the race for BP assets.

RIL and Essar are interested in BP's retail outlets, terminals and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) facilities in at least four countries in Africa.


RIL and Essar are among a dozen companies, including PetroSA, who are evaluating the sale of BP retail assets in Africa. When asked, spokespersons of the two companies said they did not comment on speculation.


A PTI report said BP was selling retail outlets, terminals and aviation fuel stations in Botswana, Tanzania, Namibia, Malawi and "possibly" Zambia, to cover costs related to the worst oil spill in US history.


BP controls as much as 70-80 per cent of the ATF market in some African countries. "BP, that roughly has around 20 per cent market share in these countries, had been trying to sell its retail assets in Africa prior to the spill. It is part of a trend among global companies to focus attention in the upstream oil and gas production business," he added.


RIL and Essar are both present in Africa, with RIL having a major storage facility in Kenya. RIL currently exports fuel to Gulf Africa Petroleum Corp (Gapco), a company it had acquired in 2007. Gapco has retail outlets in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. Essar Oil had last year acquired a 50 per cent stake in a four million-tonne a year Kenya Petroleum refinery in Mombasa.



Both RIL and Essar have refineries back home and with domestic markets being unfavourable, a foothold in Africa will help them in pushing petro products in the export market. "The margins in these countries is almost double that of the Indian market," said the executive.


http://business.rediff.com/report/2010/jul/29/ril-and-essar-to-bid-for-bp-assets-in-africa.htm

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1.On 5 December 1969, the then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi announced in the Lok Sabha the Government's decision to set up a new Refinery-cum-Petrochemical complex in Assam.

2. The foundation stone of the complex was laid on 19 January 1972 at Bongaigaon.

3. Bongaigaon Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (BRPL) was incorporated as Government of India Undertaking under the administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on 20 February 1974.

4. The company became a subsidiary of IndianOil(IOC) on 29th of March 2001 after disinvestments of share by Govt of India.




5.BRPL has the unique distinction of being the first indigenous grass root Refinery in the country integrated with a Petrochemical complex at one location



6.At present, the Refinery is processing crude available from the oil fields of ONGC and OIL located in the North-East India and Ravva crude oil from the Krishna Godavari basinoff the coast of Andhra Pradesh.



7.The capacity of the Refinery was augmented in 1995 to 2.35 MMTPA (51,400 BPSD) through expansion of the Refinery comprising of one Crude Distillation Unit (CDU-II) and one Delayed Coking Unit (DCU-II). A LPG bottling plant of capacity 22000 MTPA was added to the complex and commissioned on March 2003.

8.The 8th largest refinery of IndianOil consequent upon the amalgamation of Bongaigaon Refinery & Petrochemicals Limited (BRPL) with IndianOil .
 
9 Bongaigaon refinery is situated at Dhaligaon in Chirang district of Assam, 200 kms west of Guwahati.





10.Presently the refinery produces a wide range of petroleum products namely LPG, Naphtha, MS, SKO, HSD, LDO, LSHS, LVFO, RPC, CPC, Needle coke and solvents (Petrosol and Bonmex-II) by processing Assam Crude and Ravva Crude (from the Ravva oil fields of Krishna Godavari Basin).

 11.The refinery has developed an ecological park and a pond surrounding it containing 65000 cubic meter of water, through which the storm water drains of the plant are routed for final discharge.

 12.Another natural pond with a capacity of 30000 cubic meter of water has developed into an environment-friendly park-cum-pond for migratory birds.

13.In addition to the above a rain water harvesting system has been installed in the Bongaigaon township complex .

 14.In recognition of its green initiatives, Bongaigaon refinery was awarded the “Greentech Environment Excellence Gold Award 2008”. The refinery has also been awarded the “Indira Gandhi Paryavarn Puraskar 2006” for its outstanding environment performance.

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Fuel worth crores stolen from pipeline, 3 arrested




FARIDABAD: The police busted a gang of inter-state gang of fuel thieves who pilfered oil from the Mathura-Jullundhar pipeline and arrested three people in this connection on Monday evening.

Petroleum products worth crores of rupees had been stolen from different parts of Palwal and Sohana area through which the pipeline passes. The kingpin, residents of Gujarat, are absconding.



The three men produced before a local court in Palwal which remanded them in four day's police custody.



“These three people were arrested near Sohna crossing in Palwal district on Monday evening,“ Jai Singh, Investigating Officer of Criminal Investigating Agency, Palwal said.



Singh said the three men confessed to stealing a huge quantity of petroleum products from the Indian Oil Corporation pipeline that runs from Mathura to Jallandhar at two places in Sohna and Palwal in the recent past.



“We arrested three people in this connection on Monday evening who confessed to their involvement in the theft of petroleum products,“ Singh said, adding, “they admitted that had stolen eight tankers of petrol from the pipeline at Silani village in January.“

Prabhu Razdan / The Hindustan Times
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/newdelhi/Fuel-worth-crores-stolen-from-pipeline-3-arrested/Article1-578701.aspx

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Cairn India June qtr profit sees 6-fold jump


28 Jul 2010 PETROLEUM BAZAAR

NEW DELHI: Cairn India today reported a six-fold jump in its net profit in the quarter ended June 30 as it began selling large volumes of crude oil from its Rajasthan oilfield through a newly built pipeline. Net profit rose to Rs 281.4 crore in April-June as compared to Rs 45.4 crore a year ago, the company said in a press statement. Cairn is currently producing about 110,000 barrels per day from the Mangala oilfield in Rajasthan and is expected to reach peak output of 125,000 bpd sometime next month.



It started sales through the 590-km Barmer-Salaya pipeline in the quarter and is now selling about 100,000 bpd of Mangala crude oil to Reliance Industries, Essar Oil and Indian Oil Corp. It has tied-up sale for 143,000 bpd. The company in June started a third crude processing train. It now has a capacity to process 130,000 bpd. Cairn India Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Rahul Dhir said: "Cairn India is fully focused on ramping up production from the Rajasthan fields with delivery from the Mangala field demonstrating potential to go above the currently approved plateau production of 125,000 bpd."



"With volumes being delivered to private and public refiners, the revenue generation from Rajasthan will provide significant growth and benefits," he said. Cairn said it has so far invested USD 2.47 billion in the Rajasthan block. Gross operated production in Q1 FY 2010-11 was 94,950 barrels of oil equivalent per day, 73 per cent higher than the corresponding quarter of the previous year (59,461 boepd). Cairn said it realised USD 72 per barrel on crude sold in April-June quarter as compared to USD 60.2 per barrel a year ago.
 http://www.bharatpetroleum.in/YourCorner/PetroDailyDetails.aspx?Pnewsid=P000028436

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The government rejected the oppositions’ demand of rolling back the fuel price hike. The opposition’s demand for rolling back price hike upset the proceedings of both the parliament houses. Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said, "Why should the government pay Rs.5,000 crore per quarter for the petrol being used in anyone's car? There has been no hike for last four years and even the hike which has been done is minimal. If they (opposition) have to unite they must unite for something good."




Prebiously, Deora said in Lok Sabha that the fuel price hike had translated into an additional burden of less than a rupee on cooking gas and 50 paisa on kerosene per day. He said that the "primary objective" behind the June 26 price hike of petroleum products was to decrease the subsidy load on oil marketing companies and in that way release more funds for social sector schemes in health, food security and education. He said, "Some of the state governments are levying sales tax as high as 12.5 percent on kerosene." Courtesy:http://www.bharatpetroleum.in/YourCorner/PetroDailyDetails.aspx?Pnewsid=P000028434

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A  proposal was submitted to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik by Sonepur Energy and Oil City Private Limited  to set up an Energy Academy for the development of technical knowhow in the energy and oil sectors and create necessary infrastructure for port, power, desalination plant, fabrication and township.



While the Consortium would invest Rs 5,000 crore, other industrial houses would invest nearly Rs 10,000 crore. The projects, when completed, would provide direct employment to 20,000 people and indirect employment to one lakh.



The Energy Academy would impart training to engineer, geologist, geophysicist, drilling engineer, fabricators besides other technical persons in close association with the international oil companies.



The company, sources said, would invest Rs 100 crore on the academy which would encourage small business men in the Oil sector.



In the proposed Oil city, a port, a ship manufacturing unit, 1000 MW gas based power plant and 120 MLD Desalination Plant, besides a modern city for a population of 10,000, would be established. This apart, infrastructure for setting up of Petrochemical complex and Oil storage would be created in the city.



Official sources said the Southern Orissa, being located on the Krishna-Godabari and Mahanadi basin, has the potential for investment in the oil and gas sectors and Orissa would emerge as a major Hydrocarbon Hub in the entire South East Asia.


http://www.newkerala.com/news2/fullnews-8122.html

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1. It is an  35-year power transmission deal paving ways for import of import 250 megawatt electricity  from 2012 end.
2.Bangladesh can  export power to India in the future
3. PGCIL, India   to construct, own, operate and maintain a 400-KV double-circuit line to exchange 500-MW power
4. Transmission tariff will be fixed later by the Energy Regulatory Commission.
5.. BPDB will pay the transmission tariff on a monthly basis.
6. PGCIL will invest and construct 80 kilometer transmission line and own, operate and maintain it.
7. The Indian company will recover the construction cost under a fixed rate over 35 years.
8.The Indian part of the infrastructure will also include a 400 KV switching station at Baharampur, loop-in and loop-out of Farakka-Jeerat 400 KV single circuit line at the same place, and a 400 KV double circuit line from Baharampur of India running up to Bheramara in Bangladesh.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/energy/power/Bangladesh-signs-landmark-power-deal-with-India/articleshow/6221380.cms
.

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India plans to launch shale gas auction in august 2011





 
1. The identification of the gas producing areas will be done by early next year


2. The country is looking to launch the first-ever auction of shale gas areas in August 2011.


3. The DGH has accordingly prepared a roadmap for the shale gas auction.

4. Several basins — Cambay (in Gujarat), Assam-Arakan (in the North-East) and Gondwana (in central India) are known to hold shale gas resources.

5. ONGC board approved a pilot project for exploration of shale gas in the Damodar Basin at an expenditure of Rs 128 crore.

6. A shale gas policy is being worked out and is likely to be in place by the end of the current financial year.

7. The Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules, which govern the oil and gas exploration activity, will be amended prior to the floating of the first round of auction.

8. Companies like Reliance Industries Ltd have so far has been scouting overseas for shale gas resources

9.  Shale will be the second unconventional natural gas source in India after coal-bed methane

10. India is  likely to sign a cooperation agreement with the US Geological Survey later this year for knowledge sharing in the area of shale gas.

11. RIL recently acquired a 40 per cent stake in Atlas Energy’s Marcellus Shale acreage in the US,.

 Y K Modi-promoted Great Eastern Energy Corporation Ltd is keen to take part in the shale business.




Ajay Modi / New Delhi July 26, 2010, 0:23 IST


http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/india-plans-to-launch-shale-gas-auction-in-august-2011/402505/

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New Delhi, July 25: Moves are afoot to keep the tax incentives in natural gas during the next round of bidding for oil and gas blocks.




The Planning Commission is keen on the incentives for the ninth round of bidding under the New Exploration and Licensing Policy (Nelp-IX) that is due after September.



“Fiscal incentives similar to the exploration of oil need to be extended to all forms of natural gas exploration and exploitation,” the mid-term appraisal by the Planning Commission said.




On whether the definition of mineral oil will include natural gas vis-a-vis tax incentives, the official said, “We have taken up the issue with the finance ministry. There can be no question of Nelp-IX without tax breaks being worked out for gas as well.”




Sources said that about 50 blocks would be on offer in the ninth round of Nelp. Blocks without bids in the eighth round would be put up for sale.





Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, in his budget for 2009-10, restored the seven-year income tax holiday for the production and sale of natural gas from blocks awarded under Nelp-VIII.



R. SURYAMURTHY




http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100726/jsp/business/story_12726596.jsp

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New look regulator for gas cylinders from IOC






A new look regulator for the LPG gas cylinder at home will soon make its way in to the kitchen, if you are a consumer of Indane gas of the IndianOil (IOC). Designed with several safety features, the IOC has launched a Multi-Function Regulator (MFR) to fit in to the existing cylinders. The new regulator has user-friendly features, increased safety and would be a value addition to Indane gas consumers, D. Murali, Senior Area Manager, IOC Area Office, Madurai, told The Hindu. "It will have a digital display of gas quantity available so that it will be known when the cylinder is nearing empty level. The indicator shows three levels- gas, low gas and refill," he said.



The Multi-Function Regulator, which was initially launched in Bangalore, would be available in Tamil Nadu within the next few weeks. It would combine both the existing safety features of the cylinder regulators and new ones. It is also equipped with an auto shut-off feature so that the cylinder gets automatically shut off whenever there is a gas leak. "If there is a digital display of the quantum of gas available, housewives would be happy and they will be prepared," Mr. Murali said.



Since gas cylinder mishaps because of children are being reported, the regulator was provided with child-lock facility. "I think our new LPG regulator will be a great hit due to its salient features and safety level at home will be increased," Mr. Murali said.


The Hindu, Madurai, July 26, 2010

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NO. NAME OF THE RETAIL OUTLET ADDRESS


1 AJAY AHUJA SERVICE STATION OKHLA IND. AREA, PHASE -1 DELHI

2 AUTO CAR CARE NITI MARG, NEAR ASHOKA HOTEL, NEW DELHI - 110 021

3 AUTOMOTIVES LODHI ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 003

4 BADARPUR SERVICE STATION DELHI MATHURA ROAD, BADARPUR, NEW DELHI - 44

5 BATRA BROTHERS NOSE-II, RING ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 049

6 BATRA CAR CARE CENTRE HAMAYUN ROAD, DELHI - 03

7 BHAI OIL NIZAMUDDIN WEST, NEW DELHI - 110 013

8 CENTRAL SERVICE STATION E-24,CONNAUGHT PLACE, NEW DELHI - 110 001

9 EVERGREEN SERVICE STN. OPP. GREEN PARK, MEHRAULI ROAD, DELHI - 110 016

10 GLOBE SERVICE STATION 18 KM MATHURA ROAD, BADARPUR BORDER, NEW DELHI - 110 044

11 HEMKUNT SERVICE STATION NEAR LODHI HOTEL, JANGPURA EXTN. NEW DELHI 110 003

12 HP CENTRE - NEHRU PLACE NEHRU PLACE, NEW DELHI- 19

13 KAUSHALAYA AUTO FRIENDS COLONY - WEST, NEW DELHI - 110 065

14 LAXMI SUPER SERVICE OPP, SUPER BAZAR, LAXMIBAI NAGAR, DELHI- 110 023

15 NATHU MAL AHUJA MATHURA ROAD, BADARPUR BORDER, DELHI - 110 044

16 PANCHSHILA SERVICE STN. ANDREWSGANJ, DELHI - 049

17 PARAS AUTO SERVICE ASAF ALI ROAD, DELHI - 110 002

18 RAJEEV SERVICE STATION SUNDER NAGAR, NEAR ZOO, NEW DELHI - 110 003

19 RAJEEV S/STN (ADHOC) NIZZAMUDDIN - EAST, NEW DELHI - 110 013

20 R.D. MOTORS JASOLA, NEAR SARITA VIHAR, NEW DELHI

21 SERVICE CIRCLE DELHI MATHURA RING ROAD CROSSING, NEW DELHI - 14

22 SHANTI SERVICE STATION MADANPUR KHADAR, NEW DELHI

23 SAFDARJANG SERVICE STN. SAFDARJANG ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 003

24 USHA SPEEDWAYS OPP. APOLLO HSPITAL, MATHURA ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 044

25 WALIA SERVICE STATION OKHLA, NEAR KALKAJI, NEW DELHI - 110 049

26 ANAND SERVICE STATION( ADHOC) RANGPURI, OPP. SHIV MURTHY, NH-8, NEW DELHI

27 ANAND SERVICE STATION NEXT TO RADISSON HOTEL, MAHIPALPUR, NH-8, NEW DELHI

28 BANSIWAL SERVICE STATION SAN MARTIN MARG, CHANAKYAPURI

29 BEDI MOTORS RACE COURSE, CLUB ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 003

30 BEST FUEL CENTRE DHAULA KUAN, NEW DELHI

31 BHARGAVI AUTO JANAKPURI, NEAR NARI NIKETAN, DELHI - 110 058

32 DEVI PRASAD KAPOOR KAPASHERA BORDER, OLD GURGAON ROAD, DELHI - 26

33 DEWAN SERVICE STATION AJAY ENCLAVE, NAJAF GARH ROAD, DELHI - 110 018

34 DHAULA KUAN SERVICE STN. NEAR R.R. HOSPITAL, DHAULA KUAN, DELHI - 110 010

35 ESS JAY FUELS SECTOR - 22, DWARKA, NEW DELHI

36 HP CENTRE NEAR MOTI NAGAR P.S, NAJAF GARH ROAD, DELHI - 110 015

37 HIGHWAY SERVICE STATION R.K.PURAM, RING ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 022

38 HIMALYA SERVICE STN. SEC-22, DWARKA, DELHI

39 KUMAR SERVICE STATION VIANY MARG, CHANKAPURI, DELHI - 110 021

40 MARTIN MOTORS SECTOR - 20, DWARKA

41 MOTI RAM & COMPANY KAPASHERA BORDER, OLD GURGAON ROAD, DELHI - 37.

42 PICK-N-DRIVE OUTER RING ROAD, MEERA BAGH, DELHI - 110 041

43 PURAN SERVICE STATION KIRTI NAGAR, DELHI - 110 015

44 SHAHEED ANSUIYA DHYANI S/STN COMMUNITY CENTRE SITE NO. 2 NEAR GHANTA GHAR, HARI NAGAR, NEW DELHI

45 SRIJAN HP CENTRE NANGAL DAIRY, NEW DELHI

46 SARAN MOTORS P.LTD. BHIKA JI CAMA PLACE, NEW DELHI - 110 066

47 YASH SERVICE STN. NAJAF GARH, DELHI - 110 043

48 INDRA FILLING STATION NARAINA INDL. AREA, DELHI - 110 028

49 ASSOCIATED SERVICE STN. Near ISBT,Alipur Road,Delhi.

50 BADRINATH & SONS OPPOSITE QUEEN'S MARY SCHOOL(NEAR TIS HAZARI COURTS),BOULWARD ROAD, DELHI - 06

51 BANSAL SERVICE CENTRE NEAR LIBERTY CINEMA, NEW ROHTAK ROAD, DELHI - 110 005

52 BEDI (ADHOC) BELOW FLYOVER,SHAHDRA MAIN CHOWK, DELHI - 110 032

53 CH.AISHI RAM BATRA & SONS OPPOSITE POLICE STATION, VIVEK VIHAR, DELHI

54 CH.AISHI RAM BATRA & SONS OPPSITE SANJAY LAKE, MAYUR VIHAR, NEW DELHI

55 CHADHA SERVICE STATION B.S.ZAFAR MARG, OUTSIDE DELHI GATE, DELHI - 110 002

56 DEEP FUEL CENTRE VIKAS MARG EXT, KARKARDOOMA, DELHI - 110 092

57 EXCHANGE STORES SHASTRI PARK, GT ROAD,SHAHDARA(NEAR DMRC IT PARK), DELHI

58 GOPI S/STN NEAR AMBEDKAR COLLEGE,WAZIRABAD ROAD(BELOW FLYOVER), DELHI

59 G.S.SERVICE STATION JHEEL KHUREJI, DELHI - 92

60 KLFS(ADHOC) BELOW FLYOVER,SHAHDRA MAIN CHOWK, DELHI - 110 032

61 KAPOOR SERVICE STATION GOKULPUR, SHAHDRA, DELHI - 110 094

62 KUNDAL LAL SERVICE STN. SHASTRI PARK, GT ROAD,SHAHDARA(NEAR DMRC IT PARK), DELHI

63 KUNDAN LAL FILLING STATION 5/8, LONI ROAD, GOKUL PURI, DELHI - 110 094

64 NARAYAN SERVICE STATION KHYBER PASS, TIMARPUR, DELHI - 110 007

65 PUSA ROAD SERVICE STATION PUSA ROAD,(NEAR SPRINGDALES SCHOOL) NEW DELHI - 110 005

66 SARAN MOTORS MM.ROAD, NEAR, JHANDEWALAN MATA MANDR, DELHI - 55

67 SHYAM PRAKASH & CO. DELHI-U.P. BORDER, OPP. T.T. POST, G.T. ROAD, SHAHDRA, DELHI-92

68 UGGARSAIN & SONS NEAR SEELAMPUR, (OPP. WELCOM METRO STATION),GT ROAD , SHAHDRA, DELHI - 110 032

69 VICTORY SERVICE STATION G.T.ROAD, SHAHDARA,(NEAR CHINTAMANI SWEETS), DELHI - 110 032

70 ANAND AUTO SERVICE OLD G.T.KARNAL ROAD, NEAR AZADPUR, DELHI - 110 033

71 AZADPUR SERVICE STATION AZADPUR, DELHI - 110 007

72 BALWAN SERVICE STATION SECTOR - 16, ROHINI, DELHI -85

73 BANSAL SERVICE STATION NANGLOI, DELHI - 110 041

74 BATRA OIL CO. G.T.KARNAL ROAD, SINGHU BORDER, DELHI - 110 040

75 BHAGAWATI F/STN. BURARI, NEW DELHI

76 CHADHA OIL CO SHIVAJI PARK, DELHI - 110 026

77 DELHI PUNJAB FILLING STN. 15/1, G.T. KARNAL ROAD, SINGHU BORDER, P.O.NARELA, DELHI - 110 040

78 HINDUSTAN SERVICE STN. SECTOR - 12, ROHINI, DELHI-85

79 KAY SERVICE SATATION ROOP NAGAR, SHAKTI NAGAR CHOWK, DELHI - 110 007

80 KEELKAR SERVICE STN. SECTOR - 10, ROHINI, DELHI-85

81 KEELKAR (ADHOC) ROHINI SEC.- 3, COMMUNITY CENTRE, DELHI - 110 085

82 KITCHNEER ROAD S/STN. NEAR TV TOWER, PITAMPURA, DELHI - 110 034

83 MOUNT KAILASH HP CENTRE NETAJI SUBHASH PALACE, NEW DELHI

84 OM SERVICE STATION G.T.KARNAL ROAD, SINGHU BORDER, DELHI - 110 040

85 ROHTAK OIL CO. TIKRI KALAN BORDER, ROHTAK ROAD, DELHI - 110 041

86 R.L. BANSIWAL ROAD NO. 40, SHAHZADA BAGH, DELHI - 110 035

87 SHREYANS AUTOMOBILES NEAR WAZIRPUR DEPOT, PITAMPURA, DELHI - 110 032

88 SUPER SERVICE STATION KP BLOCK, PITAMPURA, DELHI - 110 034

89 TEJ SERVICE STATION G.T.KARNAL RAOD, DELHI - 110 033

90 TEJ (ADHOC) 5/5, G.T.ROAD, AZADPUR, DELHI - 110 033

91 TIKRI SERVICE SATION P.O.TIKRIKALAN, DELHI - 41

92 HP CENTER, PITAMPURA SITE.1, PITAMPURA, RING ROAD, DELHI - 110 052

93 AISHI RAM BATRA & SONS UNIT -II SECTOR - 9, ROHINI

94 NORTHERN SERVICE STN. ROAD NO. 40, SHAHZADA BAGH, DELHI - 110 035

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Heavy HPCL loss on unsubsidised oil sales


Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) posted a net loss of Rs 1,884.29 crore for the first quarter against a net profit for the corresponding previous quarter of 2009-10.

The company’s gross refining margin for the quarter also fell to $3.72 a barrel, compared to $5.71 for the April-June 2009 period.

“The loss is on account of no subsidy from the government for this quarter. We expect to receive our subsidy share during the second quarter,” said a senior executive from HPCL.

HPCL’s net revenue grew 21 per cent to Rs 29,219.87 crore from the Rs 24,197.58 crore last year. “The loss during the quarter is primarily on account of absorption of underrecoveries on sale of sensitive petroleum products amounting to Rs 2,939 crore.


The interest cost for the period was, however, lower at Rs 197 crore, compared to Rs 270 crore during the same period of previous year. The decrease in interest cost was due to effective treasury management, as also liquidity in the market,” the company said in a press statement. HPCL had to bear a subsidy burden of Rs151.09 crore compared with Rs141.25 crore in the April-June 2009.

The HPCL scrip ended at Rs 435.70, down 1.06 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Source 24 July 2010;business-standard.com:Mumbai:

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Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOC) posted a loss of Rs 3,388 crore in the first quarter of the current fiscal ended June 2010 compared with a profit of Rs 3,683 crore for the same quarter last year.

This was  because of  3 reasons:

1.Unmet under-recoveries. Tthe under-recovery on account of non-realisation of market-related prices for petrol, diesel, PDS kerosene, and domestic LPG for the quarter was Rs 7,343 crore. The company incurred the loss as it had to sell petrol, diesel, domestic LPG and PDS kerosene below the market price and was not compensated by the Government for it.

2. Lower refining margins. The company's gross refining margins (GRM) for the quarter shrank to $3 a barrel against $7.36 in the corresponding previous quarter due to high crude oil prices. GRM is the difference between the total value of petroleum products and the price of crude oil.

3. Foreign exchange variation losses: The company  suffered exchange losses due to rupee depreciation and higher provisioning of bonds.










Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/07/25/stories/2010072552320100.htm

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States should reduce sales tax on petrol, diesel: Prasada





The Petroleum Ministry today reiterated its appeal to state governments to reduce the sales tax component on transport fuels like petrol and diesel to curb inflation and provide relief to the public."Due to the increase in prices, a state like Uttar Pradesh alone would get an additional revenue of Rs 350 crore on petrol (and) diesel under present sales tax rates. So the the states should reduce the sales tax burden," Minister of State for Petroleum Jitin Prasada said while dedicating a city gas distribution network to the people of Ghaziabad.



The sales tax rate on petrol is 26.55 per cent in Uttar Pradesh, while the rate on diesel is 17.23 per cent. Citing the recent reduction in VAT rates by the Delhi government as an example, Prasada said, "State governments should take a cue from this and reduce the sales tax rates."Petroleum Minister Murli Deora had also called for a reduction in state sales tax and VAT on several occasions. However, barring Delhi, other states are yet to heed the request. As per Petroleum Ministry estimates, state governments will earn an additional revenue of Rs 3,942.91 crore in a year at the present VAT and sales tax rates due to the recent hike in petrol and diesel prices. States like Maharashtra would earn about Rs 550 crore, while Andhra Pradesh will get nearly Rs 410 crore. BJP-ruled Gujarat and Karnataka are estimated to gain Rs 285 crore and Rs 298 crore per annum, respectively.



Ruling out any revision in petroleum prices, Prasada said the oil marketing companies are working on the price fixation mechanism and a final decision is yet to be taken in this regard.He also asked the UP government to keep CNG and PNG free from the VAT, so that prices of these products would remain at par with Delhi.Indraprastha Gas Managing Director Rajesh Vedvyas later told reporters that the whole of Delhi and the National Capital Region, including Ghaziabad, will be covered by its CNG and piped natural gas (PNG) network in the next 5 years."The company plans to operationalise 22 CNG stations at an estimated cost of Rs 500 crore in Ghaziabad by March, 2011," he said.



Elaborating on the company's plans, Vedvyas said about 1,500 domestic consumers in Ghaziabad have already got piped gas connections in their kitchens and almost ten thousand more households will get it by March, 2011.However, consumers will have to pay more for CNG in Ghaziabad, which has been priced at Rs 30.60 per kg, due to the higher tax rates in Uttar Pradesh. The price of PNG has been pegged at Rs 18.32 per standard cubic metre (SCM).The roll-out of CNG and PNG networks in Ghaziabad was marred in controversy, as the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) had refused to grant authorisation to IGL to roll out its city gas distribution network in the area. However, after a Delhi High Court ruling on January 21 this year which said that PNGRB is not empowered to issue authorisation for CGD projects under the present rules, the Petroleum Ministry issued authorization to IGL for operational sing its network in Ghaziabad on June 30 this year.


Press Trust of India




http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/states-should-reduce-sales-taxpetrol-diesel-prasada/102466/on

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JSW Energy net profit rises 146.52% in the June 2010 quarter


Net profit of JSW Energy rose 146.52% to Rs 327.20 crore in the quarter ended June 2010 as against Rs 132.73 crore during the previous quarter ended June 2009. Sales rose 198.19% to Rs 879.26 crore in the quarter ended June 2010 as against Rs 294.87 crore during the previous quarter ended June 2009.

The company commenced commercial operations in its 2 units of 2x300 MW Thermal Power Plant on 01 July 2009 and 01 September 2009 respectively.

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Petroleum products, alcohol and power are out of GST net


Centre and States reach consensus on tax treatment of such products in the new regime.


The Centre and the States have agreed to leave out alcohol, petroleum products and electricity duty out of the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) system.


“Regarding taxation on alcohol, petroleum products such as petrol and diesel, and also electricity duty, there is now convergence between the Centre and the States that these will remain outside the GST to begin with,” Dr Asim Dasgupta, Chairman of the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers, said.


States had suggested that sales tax/VAT can continue to be levied, as is the current practice. Also, excise duty, which is being levied by the States, may not also be affected. However, the Department of Revenue did not agree to the suggestion to keep alcoholic beverages out of the GST net. The Union Finance Ministry had, in response to the discussion paper, taken the stance that alcoholic beverages should be brought under the purview of the GST in order to remove the cascading effect of GST paid on inputs such as raw material and packaging material. The Department had also said that sales tax/VAT and State excise duty can be charged over and above GST. As for the petroleum products, the Empowered Committee had suggested that the basket of petroleum products, that is, crude, motor spirit (including ATF) and diesel, should be kept outside the GST.

It had said that sales tax could continue to be levied by the States on these products with the prevailing floor rate. However, the Union Finance Ministry was of the view that petroleum products may be brought under the GST. It contended that keeping crude petroleum and natural gas out of the GST net would imply that the credit on capital goods and input services going into exploration and extraction would not be available, resulting in cascading. Leaving diesel, ATF and motor spirit out of the purview of GST would make it extremely difficult for refineries to apportion the credit on capital goods, input services and inputs, the Revenue Department had said.

Dr Asim Dasgupta


K. R. Srivats…..New Delhi, July 22….from the pages of HINDU BUSINESS LINE newspaper

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China and India import much of their fuel requirements and the rising demand in China for fuel is bound to create ripples, if not waves, in the global energy markets. More worryingly, it will mean more competition between India and China to acquire energy assets in other countries—something in which China has had far more success than India.

 BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2010 puts India's demand  at 469 million tonnes of oil equivalent in 2009, compared with China’s 2,252 million tonnes.
source:
http://www.livemint.com/2010/07/21203510/Energyhungry-dragon.html?h=B

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For every rupee the consumer spends on petrol in Delhi, the Centre will earn about 29 paise, while the State Government will get about 16 paise. The balance 55 paise will go to the oil refining and marketing companies. Simply put, the exchequer will continue to take away about 45 paise towards taxes on every rupee spent on petrol.



The new retail price is  Rs 51.43 a litre for petrol at Delhi as on 26th June 2010
Source:http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/06/27/stories/2010062752210300.htm

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BPCL develops new friction tech





The Rs 12,235-crore state-run oil refiner and marketer Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), which took a bold move to venture into upstream oil exploration & production in 2006, has lined up new business plans related to the new science of nanotechnology.



In a move that could make the company the supplier of cutting edge technology to develop lubricants for automotive and industrial uses, BPCL, in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, has developed a technology that measures friction at the point of contact. The company is in the process of obtaining patent for the product and putting it into commercial purposes. A senior executive has said the move would be ‘a game changer’ in the lubricants world, valued at $38 billion worldwide.



That is not all. Also in the pipeline are two projects that are expected to be completed and commercialized soon – a project to improve methods of storage of gas and the other is on next generation solar cells.

Credit …The Indian Express……… NEWSPAPER…………..

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PSU oil majors eye BP's stake in Vietnam gas project


2 offshore fields, pipeline and power project up for grabs; Deora in Hanoi.



With BP Plc likely to exit its hydrocarbon business in Vietnam, Indian public sector companies — ONGC, GAIL (India), Indian Oil Corporation, and Oil India — have combined forces to acquire the British firm's stake in Nam Con Son gas project. The buzz is that following the Gulf of Mexico incident, BP, which is said to be in need of resources, is looking at divesting its stake from its project in Vietnam that includes upstream and midstream units as also a power project. The project cost is estimated to be close to $1.3 billion. An Indian delegation led by the Petroleum Minister, Mr. Marla Debora, is in Hanoi to make a claim on BP's stake in two offshore gas fields, a pipeline and power project called the ‘Nam Con Son gas project'.

Mr. Debora is meeting the Prime Minister of Vietnam to discuss the investment proposals. The Indian side is also meeting the officials of PetroVietnam, the national oil company. The Petroleum Minister told Business Line that “it is a great opportunity for us. We will talk to them.”Other firms such as China's CNOOC and Sinopec as well as Thailand's PTTEP could also be interested in BP's stake in the Vietnam project.ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), the overseas investment arm of ONGC, would like to increase its stake in the gas producing asset, where it is a partner with BP and PetroVietnam.OVL has 45 per cent equity, BP 35 per cent (operator), and remaining is with PetroVietnam. Indian Oil Corporation will be looking at the 720-MW power project in which BP has a stake. GAIL (India) is exploring the possibility of acquiring BP's stake in the 376-km pipeline.BP has 32.33 per cent stake in the $565-million pipeline where its other partners are ConocoPhillips (16.7 per cent) and PetroVietnam (51 per cent). The gas produced from the fields is supplied to a 720-MW, $412-million power plant where BP, NI of Japan and Semb Corp of Singapore have 33.3 per cent stake each.

The Petroleum Secretary, Mr. S. Sundareshan, said, “There are reasonable expectations that BP would like to exit its projects in Vietnam. We would like to lay our claim on the projects. It is an opportunity which we would not like to let go off. It is a producing block, which initially was acquired by ONGC Videsh Ltd and farmed out.”OVL has been working in Vietnam since 1988 when it signed the production sharing agreement for Block 06.1, which is the upstream part of Nam Con Son project. The consortium of OVL, BP and PetroVietnam produces about 12-14 mscmd supporting about 30 per cent of power generation capacity of Vietnam. In fact, given the importance of the project the Government of Vietnam has declared it as one of the projects of national importance. The Government has approved capital investment of about $378 million by OVL in the project. Out of this OVL has already spent $217 million in the project. OVL recouped all its investment in the project in 2006 and currently earns $35-40 million of net revenues.

….Richa Mishra…..Hanoi, July 21……..from the pages of THE HINDU BUSINESS LINE newspaper.

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Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) has opposed a reported proposal to separate the role of Chairman and Managing Director in listed entities. Any such decision should not be made in haste and should be arrived at only after detailed interaction with public sector enterprises (PSEs), the SCOPE Director-General, Dr U.D. Choubey, has said. A communiqué to this effect has also been sent to Mr. R. Bandyopadhyay, Secretary in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, he said.

This move comes in the wake of a media report that SEBI's Primary Market Advisory Committee (PMAC) was considering a proposal to split the Chairman and Managing Director (read CEO) roles to ensure balance of power and corporate governance.“My view is that this (separation of Chairman and Managing Director) will have an adverse effect. The Indian management of corporate sector cannot be out rightly compared with western managements. We are not seamlessly similar to western management.

“Our systems are still personality driven and centralized around the CMD. Therefore if you create two power centres for running one corporate entity, it will have bad effect in decision making process,” Dr Choubey told Business Line here. The committee reportedly wants to prevent concentration of management powers in the hands of one individual and hence the proposal to split Chairman, Managing Director (CEO) roles. Currently, in most state-owned enterprises, there is only one post of Chairman and Managing Director and one person undertakes both the roles.

When pointed out that in developed countries such as the US, the UK and the France, the role of a Chairman is distinct from that of a CEO, Dr Choubey said that this should not be adopted in India just because the developed countries have done this.“We should not go with a superficial approach that this has happened in the UK and we should also do it. It requires deep research and good understanding of the Indian corporate system. We should not adopt this separation of posts without going into details,” he said.

Dr Choubey said that corporate governance in PSEs are much better than the private sector. He also pointed out that there are several checks and balances such as CAG, CVC audit, COPU to keep them away from hazards of abuse of power by the power centre in CMD.“If the CEO post is separated, then your vision and mission programme may not have the desired outcome. Your vision will be decided by a part-time non-executive Chairman. It is better to continue with the current arrangement of having a single person holding the post of a CMD,” he said.

SCOPE opposes separation of Chairman, MD role


by…….K.R.Srivats…..New Delhi, July 21…from the pages of THE HINDU BUSINESS LINE newspaper.

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Price of petrol in Hyderabad

1971 - Rs. 1.65 per litre
1990-Rs. 17 per litre
1995- Rs. 18.18 per litre
2008-Rs. 50 per litre
2010-Rs. 56.97 Rs/L

Send petrol price in your city in the comments column  for the benefit of others.

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The Centre, stuck with an annual subsidy bill on kerosene for the poor running as high as Rs. 16,000 crore, is mulling novel ways to trim its expenditure to curb the fiscal deficit. The latest on the table is a programme that aims to migrate kerosene users to cooking gas by packing the gas in related storiesGovt looking to rejig subsidies affordable cylinders.The formula works on a simple principle: the poor often use kerosene because they can't dish out at one go the amount needed to buy a large gas cylinder. By pushing affordable cylinders, can save money because the subsidy saving on kerosene is higher than on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).




At current prices, the subsidy on kerosene for the public distribution system, in terms of energy equivalent, is estimated at Rs.21.82 per kg, as against Rs. 15.80 per kg for LPG sold in the domestic market.The government has been inspired by the "Zero Kero" (short for zero kerosene) programme launched by Indonesia in 2007 that involves the conversion of all kerosene user households to LPG.



Under the programme, the Indonesian government has introduced subsidised 3 kg LPG cylinders for households. But this saves subsidies elsewhere. "The low-income families were given the cylinder and the stove free of cost. Between 2007 and February 2010, the net subsidy savings of the government reached nearly $1.5 billion (after netting out the cost of cylinder and stove)," said a senior petroleum ministry official, who asked not to be identified.In both India and Indonesia, state-run refiners control market prices, working in closer coordination with the government.The official said the Indonesian model is being studied because of its similarity with India.
Courtesy:HT
http://www.bharatpetroleum.com/YourCorner/PetroDailyDetails.aspx?Pnewsid=P000028337

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Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is weighing the option of setting up another greenfield refinery to meet the rising demand of petroleum and petrochemical products. The refinery with an envisaged capacity of 14-15 million metric tonnes per year (MMTPA) is expected to entail an investment of about Rs 15,000-20,000 crore, said government sources in the know of the development. The proposed refinery is likely to come up on the western coast, sources said.

When contacted a senior official of IOC said that it has been on the anvil for quite some time to set up a new refinery on the west coast for a long time now.


“Presently our focus is on the eastern region. It is too premature to talk about the new proposed refinery on the west now,” the official said.

The current refining capacity of India is about 130 million tones and this demand is rising at about 4 million tones per annum, sources said.

IOC is also in the process of forming a core team to conduct feasibility study and finalise the location of the project. “It could be anywhere in Maharashtra or Gujarat,” sources said.

IOC would rope in a joint venture partner if the project is finalised, sources said. Gujarat Refinery at Koyali in Western India is Indian Oil’s largest refinery. When commissioned in 1965-66, the Gujarat refinery had a design capacity of 3.0 MMTPA. It was subsequently increased to 4.3 MMTPA by the revamping of three distillation units. Today, it has a refining capacity of 14 MMTPA.

The Indian Oil Group of companies owns and operates 10 of India's 20 refineries with a combined refining capacity of 60.2 MMTPA. These include two refineries of subsidiary Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd. In petrochemicals, Indian Oil is investing Rs. 20,000 crore (US$ 4 billion) by the year 2011-12, according to the company’s official website.

Indian Oil, which operates over 18,500 petrol & diesel stations, the largest and the widest network in the country, has recently featured in Fortune 500 list along with seven other Indian companies.

SOURCE:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/ioc-mulls-another-refinerywest-coast/401950/

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IOC to expand overseas, will acquire oil fields in Africa


The country's second-biggest refiner Indian Oil Corp is all set to acquire the oilfields in Africa. This step came in as part of a $1 billion overseas investment plan.In a statement Mr Brij Mohan Bansal said, "Africa is top of our list to buy assets because it is near India and has good quality crude." Further adding he said, "We are planning retail outlets in Indonesia."After the government had freed gasoline prices from its control last month, the state-run Indian Oil has renewed plans to expand overseas. According to the chairman Mr. Bansal the refiner has set aside $1 billion for acquisitions overseas. The government has given the power to the refiners and eventually now they will be allowed to set diesel rates which would in turn help in increasing the cash flow. According to Vinay Nair, a Mumbai-based analyst with Khandwala Securities Ltd, "Africa offers many grades of crude and gives refiners security of supplies to have fields there," adding further he said, "They will, however, still need financial support from the government to help make profits."Initially in July last year the refiner had delayed crude-processing and pipeline projects overseas, including Nigeria and Turkey. The reason for such a situation to have arrived was the reduced cash flow which was because of selling fuels below cost. Indian Oil and Turkish builder Calik Holding had planned to spend $4.9 billion to build a 300,000 barrel-a-day refinery in Ceyhan on the Mediterranean coast.It had also been planned by companies like Eni SpA, Europe's fourth-largest oil company, to spend $2 billion on a pipeline from Samsun on Turkey's Black Sea coast to Ceyhan to transport as much as 1.5 million tonnes of Central Asian crude oil a day. Talking about the prices ofd the shares, the value has been increased 23 per cent in Mumbai trading this year, the increase came alongwith the three per cent gain in the benchmark Sensitive Index of the Bombay Stock Exchange.


Monday, July 19, 2010  HPCL

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Bio-diesel park at Bijapur




Monday, July 19, 2010


The bio-diesel plant has been inaugurated by the minister for large and medium industries Murugesh Nirani, which has been set up at the Karnataka State Women's University campus in Bijapur.The unit was set up by the Karnataka State Bio-Diesel Task Force and forest department. This unit will work as a bio-diesel production as well as information centre. In this unit, the research activities will be conducted in the future. At this unit, the varsity aims to conduct research on bio-diesel production as well as utilization issues. This centre will help in conducting higher research in this field, said Bali. Moreover, the unit will also work as bio-diesel production incubator in order to help the farmers who wish to take part in such activities, with proper information. This unit's waste matter will be utilised as wormy compost and organic farming

Source HPCL

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Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited - Resignation of Director


Mangalore Refinery And Petrochemicals Limited has informed that Dr. A.K. Balyan Director has resigned from the Board of MRPL consequent upon his appointment as MD & CEO of Petronet LNG Limited.

Source : HPCL

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1. Select your petrol pump with care.. Wherever possible patronise company-owned and company-operated petrol pumps (COCO) that are manned by the oil company officials themselves.



2. Go to those stations that are patronised by three-wheelers. The auto rickshaw drivers check mileage after every refill and use their own methods like dipping a foot-ruler into the tank to know if the pump has delivered the correct quantity or not. And they are always right in their assessment!







3. Patronise stations, which have the newest pumps like the multi-product dispensers (MPDs) installed to service customers. MPDs are believed to be quite tamper-proof and hence they will deliver correct quantity of petrol.





4.Often check your car's mileage







5. Top up the tank to get the fill-up from a pump that has an auto-cut-off nozzle.















6. Be alert when you enter a petrol pump







7. Always ensure that before the fuelling process is started the pump board display reading is set at ZERO.









8.. Come out of your car while the salesman fills up your tank and stand near the point of sale.





9. Instruct the salesman to deliver the fuel slowly.







10.Lodge a complaint on the Web site of the oil majors or send a written complaint to their office if you feel you have been short-changed













11. Know your rights. It is your right to know if the quantity being dispensed to you is correct .











The author is a management consultant in the field of fuel marketing with over 20 years of experience. Currently, he is based in Nigeria, helping a former Shell company set up best retail and customer services practices.







Sudhir Bisht

http://in.rediff.com/money/2006/oct/04petrol.htm

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A on 26 June 2010 these are the prices of Petrol, Diesel & Auto LPG prices in Kolkata



Unleaded Petrol: 55.38 Rs/L

Normal Diesel: 39.99 Rs/L



Auto LPG: 32.89 Rs/L

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This data is as on  20th July 2010

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No big bang deregulation, please, we are the UPA



With the three public sector oil retailers deciding to have a uniform price,

a cartel has been created. So where will competition go?

The Government has kept an escape clause so that it can intervene if crude oil prices rise sharply.

June not only saw the weather God play his little games, but also the Government. On the 25th, just after the Prime Minister left for Toronto for the G-20 meet, it announced the deregulation of petrol prices, but not of diesel. But like Banquo's Ghost, the question is still hanging in peoples' minds: Has the Government actually given the public sector oil marketing companies — Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation — complete freedom to decide retail prices?

Pricing benchmark

The three oil companies have decided to review the price on a monthly basis. But they have not fixed any dates, nor disclosed the mechanism for deriving the price. They say giving a date would lead to hoarding. As to the formula, patience, friends, we are working it out. Issues such as to which international market the pricing will be benchmarked needs to be decided. Typically, the benchmark could be Dubai, as most imports of high sulphur crude are based on Dubai pricing. However, there have been instances when Dubai price has been higher than in other markets. What does deregulation mean for competition and pricing? With growing competition in the retail sector, prices are eventually expected to soften on the retail front. However, with the three public sector oil retailers deciding to have a uniform price, a cartel has been created.

Competition issue

So where will competition go?


Private players such as Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Essar are of the view that this price should not be lower than the export realization. And if the price is higher than the export price, the consumer has to bear the burden.

Whence the question: What will be the formula?

Private players which have adopted a wait-and-watch attitude also feel that any difference between them and the public sector should not be higher than 50 paise to Re 1 a litre. Besides, the Government has only deregulated petrol price, which accounts only for about 10 per cent of the petroleum products sold. Diesel, which accounts for more than one-third of the oil product consumption, is still under Government control. Though the public sector companies have decided to have a uniform pricing, the industry expects each to undertake activities to promote its products by offering sops or price incentives.

Pricing in India

On the question of how competitive the prices in India are vis-à-vis the neighbourhood, the Ministry has said that while petrol and diesel prices in India are broadly comparable with the neighbouring countries, the prices of PDS kerosene and domestic LPG in India are the lowest among the South Asian countries. Besides, the prices of petrol and diesel in Delhi are inclusive of the quality differential on account of superior Euro-IV/BS-IV fuels introduced with effect from April 1, 2010. Also, Delhi has reduced VAT rates on diesel, effective July 20, leading to a drop in retail prices by Rs 2.50 a litre.

Comparable levels

And on why a comparison is being made among South Asian countries and not with Europe and the US, the Ministry said the comparison of retail prices of PDS kerosene and domestic LPG have been made with our neighbours for the following reasons:

They form part of the same geographical region — the Asian sub-continent. They are not only socio-culturally of the same milieu, they are at comparable levels of economic development. All of them depend on oil imports for meeting their domestic energy requirements and are thus placed in a similar position. While deciding to deregulate the petrol prices, the Government has also kept an escape clause in hand so that it can intervene if crude prices rise sharply. But the definition of sharp is not clear and will perhaps depend on the proximity to major elections. The period of uncertainty still continues. The industry feels that not much clarity will emerge before December. Will the policymakers prove them wrong, we can, perhaps, wait and watch.

by….RICHA MISRA …from the pages of HINDU BUSINESS LINE NEWSPAPER.

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'Necklace' of terminals along India's coastline planned



MUMBAI: Oil and gas logistics major, Aegis Logistics, today said it will be building a "necklace" of port terminals around the Indian coastline, construct inland depots and autogas retail outlets. "The next major stage of our growth is in the oil & gas logistics business," the company's chairman, K M Chandaria, told shareholders at its annual general meeting held at Vapi in Gujarat. The opportunities in the segment include transit storage and re-export of crude oil and petroleum products, bunkering business which entails refueling of ships with marine fuels, jet fuel logistics for the airline industry and non-fuel retailing in the autogas stations, he said.

Stating that India is on the radar of international oil trading companies, Chandaria cited the example of the trans-shipment and re-export of petroleum products business where lucrative opportunities await. "These firms are interested to come into India, for transit storage of their crude oil and petroleum products. The product is then re-exported depending on their trading requirements...Aegis is negotiating to become a major partner in servicing their needs," he said.



The oil price deregulation is also expected to have a positive impact on the company as more and more players enter the segment, he said. Aegis, which had clocked a net profit of Rs 11.40 crore in FY 10, had announced a bonus issue recently under which shareholders were given two shares for every three shares held.


 Courtesy:ET

Source
http://www.bharatpetroleum.in/YourCorner/PetroDailyDetails.aspx?Pnewsid=P000028310

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1. Use of electricity  accounts for nearly 90% of the carbon footprint of a single structure.
 
2. With an estimated 10% increase in the built-up area of residential and commercial buildings every year, energy demand is also expected to increase multifold.

 3.Green buildings can help reduce electricity consumption.

4.Developers as well as end-consumer should be given incentives in the form of tax benefits to encourage green homes.

5. Although some banks have started looking at subsidising loan rates for green units, the benefit for a developer is yet to come. The country’s largest lender SBI offers 50 basis points interest discount to borrowers for green homes.

6. At present, the total area under green construction in the country stands at 406 million sq ft, and this is expected to reach about 6 billion sq ft in next five years.

7.A green building incorporates several features, such as effective use of existing landscapes and use of recycled building materials.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-company/corporate-trends/Give-incentives-for-constructing-green-buildings/articleshow/6185227.cms

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PSUs get closing ceremony holiday



Commonwealth Games has given one more holiday to all Central government employees posted in Delhi. The government has decided all Central government and its public sector undertaking offices in Delhi will remain closed on October 14 -a Thursday -so that the employees can watch the Games' closing ceremony at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, which is close to Central government employee residential areas.






The Hindustan Times

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Tata, IOC in global list of cos with human rights policy


…by…Rajiv Tikoo …from the pages of The Financial Express



New Delhi: Having a stated human rights policy is no longer a matter of choice, but a business imperative for an increasing number of companies around the world. And in the Indian context, it’s just right that two of the country’s largest and respected companies—the Tata Group and Indian Oil—have made it to the list of 270 companies worldwide to have adopted a human rights policy statement, according to a report released at a recent UN business summit in the US. “Companies everywhere are realising that human rights are core business concerns. It’s about putting people at the centre of what businesses do. It’s about the social sustainability of markets and enterprises. This understanding builds on a longstanding tradition in the relationship between business and communities in India,” says John G Ruggie, special representative of UN secretary-general for business and human rights.



Explaining the rationale behind having a written policy, VC Agrawal, director (Human Resources), Indian Oil & director-in-charge (IBP division), says, “It’s helpful to have a written human rights policy in today’s world because human beings are now increasingly being seen as central to business, and everything flows from a policy.”



Ruggie was the star speaker at the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit, which was attended by representatives from over 1,000 businesses and saw high profile NGOs—Realising Rights and the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre—share the list of companies having a human rights policy. The UN Global Compact is a public-private initiative, which encourages companies to commit to sustainability and corporate citizenship by adhering to its principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.

Recent problems like those in land acquisition have highlighted the need for businesses to look into human rights aspects. And even the Tata Group, despite its long track record of corporate social responsibility, was the target of public ire in Singur, West Bengal, over land acquisition, which finally led to its group company Tata Motors abandon the Nano project and shift to Gujarat. “Companies are realising that they not only have to respect human rights, but also demonstrate it. If businesses have to grow, they cannot operate in their own islands of prosperity amidst deprived population. If they do so, it can lead to a backlash,” says Uddesh Kohli, a special adviser to the UN Global Compact.



Delays over land acquisition alone can derail investment of about $100 billion, estimates industry chamber Assocham. And the risks are from multiple, ranging from investors pulling out over allegations of human rights violations, as in the case of Vedanta, to firms facing criticism for buying assets in conflict-ridden countries like Sudan, as in the case of OVL. Elaborates Mark Hodge, director, UK-based Global Business Initiative on Human Rights, “The costs are increasingly high under various heads like financial (including limited access to capital markets), reputational, legal (including the cost of litigation), operational interruptions and cancellation of licence to operate.” Based in New Delhi, Hodge consults with Indian companies and speaks regularly at business and human rights roundtables. One of the key messages from such workshops is that when companies take care of human rights of neighbourhood populations, particularly in improving their quality of life, it’s likely to ensure availability of healthy and educated manpower, consumers for their products, and local goodwill, which secures amicable environment for their operations.



The need for getting the human rights approach right is felt all the more in areas with weak governance or in conflict-like situations, where philanthropic or corporate social responsibility initiatives may not earn adequate rub-off. A number of Indian companies have a long and respectable tradition of philanthropy, points out Salil Tripathi, policy director at UK-based Institute for Human Rights and Business. He added, “What these companies should do is to connect these dots and learn from the international experience, which shows that philanthropy is entirely voluntary, corporate social responsibility is desirable, but accountability and respecting human rights is increasingly essential and necessary.” The realisation needs to sink in sooner than later. The government policy is already moving ahead in this direction. Voluntary Guidelines on Corporate Social Responsibility issued by the ministry of corporate affairs in December 2009 urge companies to respect human rights for all and avoid complicity in human rights abuses. It’s now the turn of companies to respond.

Credit-
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/tata-ioc-in-global-list-of-cos-with-human-rights-policy/648022/0

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1.The term oil shale generally refers to any sedimentary rock that contains solid bituminous materials (called kerogen) that are released as petroleum-like liquids when the rock is heated in the chemical process of pyrolysis.

2.Shale oil or kerogen oil is an unconventional oil produced by the destructive distillation of oil shale. This process, a controlled form of pyrolysis, converts the organic matter within the rock (kerogen) into synthetic oil and gas.

3.The resulting oil can be used immediately as a fuel or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing impurities such as sulfur and nitrogen.

 4. The refined products can be used for the same purposes as those derived from crude oil..

5. Oil shale was formed millions of years ago by deposition of silt and organic debris on lake beds and sea bottoms. Over long periods of time, heat and pressure transformed the materials into oil shale in a process similar to the process that forms oil; however, the heat and pressure were not as great.

 6. Oil shale generally contains enough oil that it will burn without any additional processing, and it is known as "the rock that burns".


7. Oil shale can be mined and processed to generate oil similar to oil pumped from conventional oil wells; however, extracting oil from oil shale is more complex than conventional oil recovery and currently is more expensive.

8. The oil substances in oil shale are solid and cannot be pumped directly out of the ground. The oil shale must first be mined and then heated to a high temperature (a process called retorting); the resultant liquid must then be separated and collected.

9. An alternative but currently experimental process referred to as in situ retorting involves heating the oil shale while it is still underground, and then pumping the resulting liquid to the surface.


Source: http://ostseis.anl.gov/guide/oilshale
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_shale

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The United Nations listed India as the fifth biggest wind and solar water heating energy producer in a report released on Friday. The report, Global Trends in Green Energy 2009, says the developing world is taking a lead in adopting new renewable technologies. For the first time, private sector green energy investments in Asia and Oceania, some $40.8 billion in 2009, exceeded that in the Americas, at $32.3 billion, the report said.




"Manufacturing leadership is shifting from Europe to Asia, as countries like China, India and South Korea continue to increase their commitments to renewable energy," it said.



The report also says the developing nations have more than half of global renewable power capacity and make up nearly half of all countries with policy targets (38 out of 80 countries).



It acknowledges the Indian government's efforts in giving incentives to renewable energy through its missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change.



Like India, global investment in energy efficiency technologies witnessed a 34 per cent increase to $ 4 billion.



"For the first time, energy-smart technologies attracted more venture capital and private equity investment than any other clean energy sector," the report said.



The report also said that for the second year in a row, both the US and Europe generated more power capacity from renewable sources such as wind than from conventional sources like coal and gas.

Source:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-takes-a-big-leap-in-renewable-energy/Article1-573444.aspx

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Ashok Kumar Balyan on Friday took over as the chief executive officer and managing director of Petronet LNG Ltd, the nation's largest liquefied natural gas importer. Balyan, who completed M Tech from IIT-Delhi and PhD from Germany, was director for Human Resources and Business Development in Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) before joining Petronet, the company said in a statement here. "He has more than three-and-a-half decades of experience in exploration, production operations, project management, business development and human resource functions," it said.




A panel, comprising heads of promoter firms of PLL, had selected Balyan for the top job in May, after interviewing seven candidates - including former Indian Oil (IOC) chairman Sarthak Behuria, and Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) chairman and managing director Arun Balakrishnan.



PLL director (Finance) Amitabh Sengupta was the panel's second-best choice.



After his selection, Balyan resigned from ONGC, from where he was due to retire on July 31, 2011, on attaining the superannuation age of 60 years.



As Petronet is a private firm, the retirement age there is 65 years.



Balyan has been appointed for an initial period of five years as CEO and managing director, which can be further extended till he attains 65 years of age.



Besides Balakrishnan and Behuria, S K Roongta (who was chairman of steel maker SAIL on the date of the interview) and GAIL finance director R K Goel were among the candidates who appeared before the search committee on May 29, official sources said.



The post of CEO and managing director of PLL became vacant after Prosad Dasgupta opted for early retirement. Dasgupta's five-year term was to come to an end on August 31 and he was eligible for a two-year extension till he attained superannuation at the age of 65 in 2012.



He, however, quit the job in May.



Oil secretary S Sundareshan, who is the chairman of PLL, constituted the search committee -- comprising representatives of IOC, ONGC, GAIL, Bharat Petroleum and Gaz de France. Petronet Independent Director DP Roy was also on the committee.



The four oil PSUs hold 12.5 per cent stake each in Petronet, while GdF has 10 per cent. Ashok Kumar Balyan today took over as the chief executive officer and managing director of Petronet LNG Ltd, the nation's largest liquefied natural gas importer.

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Diesel in Delhi will cost Rs 2.50 less per litre from July 20, 2010, after the state government cut down Value-Added Tax (VAT) on the fuel from the existing 20% to 12.5%. A litre of diesel will now cost Rs 37.60 against the current price of Rs 40.10. The government said its decision to slash VAT was taken after it was found that the city government was losing on revenue on sale of diesel as people preferred to buy the fuel from neighbouring cities of Haryana where the rate was much less

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Cash-short oil marketing companies (OMCs) of the government are now looking at newer ways of revenue generation, with Indian Oil Corporation deciding to join the race for the trunk gas pipeline business. This segment of business has so far been dominated by a purely gas marketing and transportation company, GAIL India, and Reliance Industries Ltd, now the biggest producer of natural gas in the country.
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) opened the technical bids today for the Mallavaram (near Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh)-Bhopal-Bhilwara (Rajasthan)-Vijaipur (near Guna in Madhya Pradesh) pipeline. GSPL, a subsidiary of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation Ltd (GSPCL), which has struck gas in the Krishna-Godavari (K-G) Basin, had originally proposed this pipeline to the board to transport its gas.



IOC, biggest of the OMCs, put in a bid with Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPC) for this project, the bidding for which closed today. The only other bid was from GAIL India.



Indian Oil chairman B M Bansal had earlier told Business Standard, the company was planning to bid for all three trunk pipelines for which bids were being invited. The company has a crude and product pipeline network of 10,000 km.



“We will evaluate the technical bids first and then decide on the financial bids. The winner will be declared after three weeks,” said a senior Board official. Companies such as GAIL, Gujarat State Petronet, L&T, GMR and Engineers India had participated in the pre-bid conference. However, only GAIL and Gujarat State Petronet finally bid for the first of the three trunk pipelines.



The Board had earlier invited bids for two more trunk pipelines, Mehsana (Gujarat)-Bhatinda (Punjab) and Bhatinda-Jammu & Kashmir. However, it was forced to extend the dates for these pipelines due to non-notification of Section 16 of the PNGRB Act and a judgement of the Delhi High Court which asked the Board not to proceed with city gas or pipeline authorisation since Section 16 was not notified. The section was notified with effect from today. The section authorises the regulator to lay, build, operate or expand a city or local natural gas distribution network. The last date of bids for the Mehsana-Bhatinda pipeline is July 23.



The Board has been mandated by the government to rapidly expand the domestic gas pipeline network. At present, the bulk of gas consumption is accounted for by the western and northern states, while the eastern and southern states are lagging due to low pipeline density. The government is keen to expand the network to bring down the considerable inter-state disparity in gas consumption.



With the recent natural gas find in the eastern offshore K-G basin, indigenous production is set to double and natural gas to emerge as an important source of energy. LNG infrastructure in the country is also being expanded. Current domestic gas production is estimated at about 160 million standard cubic metres a day (mscmd) and is set to increase, with a production ramp-up by Reliance Industries’ KG-D6 block from 62 mscmd at present to 80 mscmd later
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/ioc-set-to-enter-gas-pipeline-business/401582/

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CHENNAI - Energy from renewable sources can meet the 10 percent target set by the National Action Plan on Climate Change by 2015, a top power sector official said here Wednesday.




“A study conducted by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) revealed that the supply from renewable energy resources could exceed 47,720 MW by 2015 and the share of solar power alone will be around 4,000 MW,” CERC Chairman Pramod Deo said.



Inaugurating the two-day seminar on renewal energy Green Power 2010, organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), he said: “Considering the infirm nature of generation and difficulties in scheduling, there is a need to promote smart grid technologies.”



He said the government is offering a generation-based incentive for the solar power industry so as to meet the National Solar Mission target of 20 GW by 2022.



He said that India’s total installed power generation capacity is 1,61,352 MW as on May, 2010, wherein the share of renewable energy is about 10 percent (17,222 MW).



However, currently renewable energy contributes just four percent of total power generation.



According to R. Chirstodas Gandhi, chairman and managing director, Tamil Nadu Energy Development Agency (TNEDA), the renewal energy sector should look at small projects to provide power for unconnected and remote locations.



“We should use renewable energy not only for augmenting power but also for making the scenario more inclusive for the participation of small scale industry,” he said.



Demanding doubling of generation-based incentives to Re.1 per unit, Ramesh Kymal, chairman, Renewable Energy Council, CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre, said the cap of Rs.6.2 million a MW needs to be removed.



Suggesting the incentives extended under solar mission be extended to other sectors to avoid lopsided growth, Kymal added that the government has to make available the fund generated through levying a cess of Rs.50 per tonne of coal to fund the renewable energy projects at lower interest rates.

http://blog.taragana.com/business/2010/07/14/renewable-energy-supply-can-meet-the-2015-target-78580/

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Essar Power Limited (EPL), has entered into binding agreements for the acquisition of a 100 per cent interest in Navabharat Power Pvt Limited. EPL will initially acquire 76 per cent of the existing equity with balance 24 per cent being acquired upon completion of certain project milestones, the company in an e-mail to Greater Kashmir said.
Navabharat Power is a 2,250 MW coal-fuelled power plant (Project) being set up in Dhenkanal district, Orissa, India.
The Project is being implemented in two phases; the first phase of 1,050 MW and phase two of 1,200 MW at a total estimated capital cost of US$ 2 billion. The Project includes the allocation of the Rampia Coal block of 112 million metric tonnes and a 4.7 million metric tonnes per annum tapering coal linkage with Coal India Ltd. Phase 1 of the Project already has in place a number of approvals including environment clearances. All other approvals are being progressed, including land acquisition. Phase 1 is expected to achieve financial closure by end of CY2010. The advanced stage of the approval process is expected to save about 2 years in execution time compared to a greenfield investment.
Commenting on today’s agreement, Naresh Nayyar, CEO of Essar Energy, according to the statement, said, “Navabharat Power is a major part of our power phase II development projects. This acquisition is in line with the plans announced at the time of our IPO and will keep us on track to develop over 11,000 MW of power capacity by the end of 2014, thereby maintaining our leading position in the private sector power generation market in India.

Source:http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2010/Jul/16/essar-energy-to-acquire-navabharat-power-pvt-limited-64.asp

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RAJKOT: Determined to convert the city's energy source to solar energy, the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) has declared various incentives to promote solar energy harvesting and creating awareness about the renewable energy. The city had earlier been selected to be developed as a solar city' by ministry of new and renewable energy, government of India.




According to officer on special duty, RMC, Alpna Mitra, the RMC is replacing the existing electric streetlights with solar streetlights. These LED-based solar streetlights save energy consumption. About 200 streetlights will be replaced. We are determined to make the city a solar city by various programmes. Efforts are on to create a model city in solar harvesting and renewable energy sector.



Among the already declared incentives was the rebate to be given to users of solar water heating system in residential and commercial buildings in the city. "A Rs 500 rebate in property tax (residential) per year will be given for five years to a house owner who will use solar water heating system and Rs 1,000 rebate will be given in property tax for commercial building users. We are hopeful that this move help us in people's participation in coming days,'' city mayor Sandhya Vyas said.



This apart, RMC is going to organise an international-level seminar on solar energy by the end of the year, where experts and practitioners of this energy will be invited to exchange ideas.



"Energy audits will also be conducted of government buildings, public sector buildings, water pumping and streetlighting in the city at regular interval. RMC will take necessary steps towards conservation of electricity. The time has come to go towards solar energy," said RMC commissioner Dinesh Brahmbhatt, adding, "We will achieve this by involving residents through various incentives to opt for harvesting solar energy and also dis-incentives for not following the rules. We are in the process to amend the building bye-laws for making the use of solar devices mandatory in certain building and drafting the energy efficient green buildings norm for the city."




Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Rajkot/Incentives-to-promote-solar-energy-harvesting/articleshow/6173654.cms

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Suzlon Energy Ltd has won a repeat order from Siddhayu Ayurvedic Research Foundation Pvt Ltd, a Baidyanath group company. Suzlon will set up, operate and maintain the 19.2 MW project, which will be installed in the Dhule and Satara districts in Maharashtra. The project comprises of four units of Suzlon’s S82 1.5 MW, and seven units of Suzlon’s S88 2.1 MW wind turbine generators

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Petro pricing: Spot the difference





Circa 2002: “... the finance minister has announced the dismantling of the administered price mechanism in the petroleum sector from April 1, 2002. The pricing of petroleum products will become market-determined ... LPG and kerosene would continue to be subsidised with a fixed subsidy from the government for another 3-5 years.” — Honourable petroleum minister Ram Naik, NDA (Global crude oil price $26.88 per barrel)



Circa 2010: “... the government has decided that the pricing of petrol and diesel both at the refinery gate and the retail level will be market-determined ... Further increases will be made by PSU oil marketing companies (OMC) in consultation with the ministry of petroleum and natural gas... Market-determined pricing of petrol and diesel is expected to do away with the OMCs’ under-recoveries on these two products... PDS kerosene and domestic LPG, the government has decided that the subsidies on these products will continue .” — Honourable petroleum minister Murli Deora, UPA-II (Global crude oil price at $78.86 per barrel)



The obvious difference between the two announcements — proclaimed landmark reforms in the country’s energy sector — is the difference in the time, the government in office and, most importantly, the global crude oil prices. But the similarities in the two official announcements that come almost exactly after eight years (March 28, 2002, and June 25, 2010), prompt more questions than answers. First: why is a stated policy being reiterated? The answer, as most know, is simple. The price decontrol in the petroleum sector remained more on paper than in practice.



Barely a fortnight after the UPA government made this grandiose reform announcement — which followed discussions and debates and yet another committee report, this time by Dr Kirit Parikh — the autonomous (sic) oil companies after a meeting amongst themselves and the ministry decided to review prices of petrol only — as opposed to both petrol and diesel — on a monthly basis, which they would announce after consultation with the parent ministry. Odd isn’t it? These very companies have been crying hoarse in private about how selling fuel at government-controlled prices erodes their profitability completely. More importantly , the controlled pricing regime impacts competition in the sector, which leaves the consumer with little choice. Also , not to mention the uncertainty for the upstream oil-producing companies like ONGC and OIL that have to bear a part of the subsidy burden. At last estimate, ONGC is to bear a subsidy burden of Rs 6,000 crore for the first quarter of 2010-11 .



The government needs to allow market pricing to ensure competition that will benefit the consumer with better services and prices. Private oil companies that had made a modest beginning with retail outlets were selling higher amounts per pump partly because of better efficiency. Also, market pricing will disincentivise adulteration of fuel which is rampant in the industry . Greener fuel like those blended with ethanol would find a play in the market. The recommendations of the Parikh committee (earlier Rangarajan and Chaturvedi committee) of establishing a transparent subsidy-sharing regime surely have been put on the back burner as of now. Diesel prices, the petroleum ministry has announced, will remain under the government purview. So, what was the major achievement as far as the petroleum-pricing reform was concerned? The constraints faced by the present government are understandable.



ONE , as is clear, global crude oil prices are still ruling firm, and have been volatile for the last few years. With India importing close to 80% of its energy requirements , high crude oil prices are always a huge challenge for the government . The risk of a high import bill, the pressure on government borrowings and the risk of fiscal instability if consumers are to be insulated from the price spikes is always there. Not to mention the high inflation — inflation today is ruling at 10.55% against 4.87% in 2002 — and the impact of high fuel prices. But continuing with high subsidies, which have to be funded through government budget or increased borrowings, also leads to a greater danger of consumption indiscipline.



For India, which spends billions of dollars in importing crude oil — the raw material that is used to make petrol diesel, aviation fuel, cooking gas or kerosene, among others — it is a luxury to dole out subsidies to the richie-richs of the society. Consumers who spend a bomb in buying the latest car surely can pay a few rupees more on the petrol or diesel they buy. The artificially-low prices of petrol and diesel have also hampered growth of public transport. With most big cities in the country working on metro rail projects, consumption of liquid motor fuel should come down. If developed countries can make it mandatory to adopt car pooling to save energy and reduce emissions, it is almost a necessity for an energy-dependent country like India.



To be fair, the NDA government, thanks also the advantage that global crude oil prices were far lower, allowed oil companies flexibility in fuel pricing for the first two years: the periodicity was fixed, revision every fortnight in line with global markets, and the products decontrolled were petrol and diesel. This is not saying that the petroleum ministry and its babus did not monitor or check what the oil companies were doing. In fact, senior officials of the PSU oil companies were regulars at Shastri Bhavan every fortnight to get the green signal from the political master before the price revision was made public.



But as global crude oil prices moved up, the autonomy given to oil companies was gradually taken away and the government took upon itself the job of fixing retail prices of all fuel, cooking or transport. What’s more, there was no official announcement or statement that the decontrolled regime had been paused. So, for investors looking into India’s petroleum refining and marketing sector, the policy on paper was very misleading.



Decontrolling petro-pricing does not reduce government control. It has been decided that in case of a large increase or volatility in international oil prices, the government will suitably intervene in the pricing of petrol and diesel. But this needs to be defined as to when and how — this has been left unsaid. An answer to this question will be provided depending on how far an election is. For, isn’t petro-pricing all about vote-bank politics?

……..by…..Soma Banerjee / The Economic Times

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In Delhi, jet fuel rates were slashed by Rs 1,390 per kilolitre to Rs 40,099 per kl, in Kolkata it was cut by Rs 1,467 a kl to cost Rs 48,460 per kl, in Mumbai the rate was brought down by Rs 1,448 a kl to Rs 41,361 per kl, while in Chennai it was decreased by Rs 1,508 per kl to Rs 44,334 a kl

Source:http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/Fall-in-jet-fuel-prices-may-not-bring-down-fares/articleshow/6174176.cms

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