Petroleum minister Ram Naik will be meeting finance minister Yashwant Sinha on Monday to work out the details of the steps to be taken during the last quarter of the fiscal for dismantling the administered pricing mechanism (APM) for the oil sector from April 1, 2002.

He said this final meeting between the two would deliberate in detail on the proposed regulatory Bill for the downstream refining and marketing sector while also firming up views on providing freight equalisation subsidy for far-flung areas.

The minister said that selling petroleum products on a commercial basis in far-flung areas would be difficult as the transportation component would be added to the cost. "We are deliberating on whether to provide freight equalisation subsidy on transportation of petroleum products to far-flung areas in the northeast and Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

Naik said a regulatory authority would be put in place for the downstream sector. The Bill for the same would be put before the Cabinet for approval immediately after the current Winter Session of Parliament.

The meeting, according to Naik, would also decide on the pricing of natural gas, which has been decided to be linked to the import-parity price.

Besides natural gas pricing, the downstream refining and marketing regulatory authority Bill would be finalised at the next meeting on Monday, Naik said adding that for the upstream exploration and production, the present director-general of hydrocarbons would be converted into a regulator. Natural gas will have a separate regulator.

The minister said after the dismantling of APM, crude, petroleum products and natural gas will be transported on a common-principle basis. "We are working out regulations for the same."