ONGC may buy loss-making GSPC

Jairam Ramesh said as Gujarat CM Modi had claimed that GSPC found 20 tcf of gas in KG basin which after 11 years turned out to be only 1 tcf

The Congress on Tuesday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleging that he had asked petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan to plan Oil and Natural Gas Corporation buying out loss-making Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation.

“Who took this decision for ONGC to buy GSPC? When most experts say there is very little chance to extract any gas from GSPC's reserves. Why should ONGC then buy GSPC,” Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said at an AICC briefing.

“Why should ONGC take on GSPC's loans of Rs 20,000 crore for something that is valued at mere Rs 3,000 crore,” he said.

Noting the centre’s proposal was against the six lakh small shareholders of ONGC besides around 200 foreign and Indian financial institutions, who have invested in the central PSU, Ramesh said, “ONGC's money belongs to these shareholders, not to Dharmendra Pradhan."

The Congress leader said that as former chief minister of Gujarat Modi had claimed in 2005 that GSPC had found 20 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas in the KG basin which after 11 years turned out to be only 1 tcf. Based on Modi’s earlier claims, 15 public sector banks had loaned Rs 20,000 crore to GSPC which was now bankrupt and unable to service the debt, he said.

He cited a CAG report to allege that GSPC squandered away the taxpayer's money recklessly through suspicious transactions with dubious companies in India, Yemen, Egypt, Indonesia etc.

Ramesh further linked PM Modi with a particular corporate group wondering why the petroleum ministry had asked Indian Oil Corporation and Gas Authority of India Ltd to invest in Adani's LNG project in Dhamra, Odisha which was set up last year and has no assets.