Gas pricing hub on the anvil
India will see massive energy projects worth US$300 billion over the next decade with intensified focus on natural gas, said Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The projects will include refineries, pipelines and distribution network, Pradhan told KPMG’s ENRich 2018 conference in Delhi on 11 Dec 2018.
“As a next step, we would soon be setting up a gas trading hub that will allow easy and ready access to gas suppliers and buyers to freely trade natural gas and in turn help India to develop its own hub-based pricing,” he announced.
The minister also gave an update on large projects.
A US$40 billion oil refinery-petrochemical complex, the world’s largest energy hub, is being built in Maharashtra while a US$3 billion gas pipelines are being laid in the eastern part of the country.
Two liquefied natural gas receiving terminals are being built at Ennore in Tamil Nadu and Dhamra in Odisha. The Rs.10,000 crore pipelines are for eastern and southern states, Pradhan told the conference.
Expansion of compressed natural gas (CNG) for automobiles and piped natural gas for households is underway to cover 52% of the country over the next two to three years.
Work on gas projects has begun in 174 districts and will be expanded to cover over 400 districts in by 2020-21, added the minister.
“Work is also underway to establish 12 modern bio-refineries at a cost of Rs.10,000 crore to produce second generation ethanol,” he said.
A scheme of 5,000 plants has been launched to produce bio-CNG from agri-waste in the next five years.
Among other projects Indradhanush Gas Grid Ltd has been formed to lay 1,500 km pipeline with an investment of Rs 6000 crore while a 2,600 km long Jagdishpur-Haldia and Bokaro-Dhamra pipeline project is in progress.
The global investor industry is today keenly looking at Indian energy sector as an attractive investment destination, he pointed out.
“The Indian energy sector is at the herald of a new beginning. The four energy pillars viz. Energy Access, Energy Efficiency, Energy Sustainability and Energy Security, has to be seen in tandem for a stable energy future,” said Pradhan.
Petroleum Ministry has endeavored to “Reform, Perform and Transform’ the sector, he added. fiinews.com
