With production from Reliance Industries’ KG-D6 field stuck at 60 million standard cubic metres per day (mscmd), the government has decided not to make any fresh gas allocation from it.
Consequently, Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Power will not get any extra gas for its four power plants, including the existing Samalkot power plant in Andhra Pradesh. Senior government officials said the minutes of the meeting of the empowered group of ministers (EGoM) on the New Exploration Licensing Policy had been finalised.
The EGoM had met on July 28 to review the production and allocation from KG-D6 field. “No new allocation has been made to any company, since the entire production of 60 mscmd is being consumed,” an official said.
The Anil Ambani group had sought 28 mscmd for four gas-based power projects, including Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, Shahapur in Maharashtra’s Raigarh district, Jambusar in Gujarat’s Bharuch and Samalkot in Andhra Pradesh. The EGoM also examined gas demand from companies like Lanco, GMR and Sravanthi Group that are scheduled to go on stream by 2011-12.
The EGoM decided that the fertiliser and power ministries would be informed about future gas availability for the two sectors. “The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas will indicate the future gas availability to the Department of Fertiliser and Ministry of Power and invite their proposals for commercial utilisation of gas. Appropriate proposals will be put up before the EGoM,” Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary S Sundareshan had told reporters after the July EGoM meet.
The EGOM may be right in refusing any fresh allocations of Gas right now - for any Power projects if entire available Gas is already committed. But then, the same Government only is aiming for a huge additional capacity of Power in next few years! Does it have a Plan or does it not have a Plan for producing the required POWER? If so, with what raw material? Some of the projects are UMPPs floated by the center itself! Does the right hand not know what the left hand needs and the left hand know what the right hand needs? There must be more clarity and comprehensiveness in such decisions. Else, no entrepreneur may come forward to commit his money on any such Government Project.
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