Gas utility stocks gain as Govt aims to extend piped gas to 1 crore homes in 5 years

Three gas utility companies rose by 0.01% to 1.74% at 15:55 IST on BSE after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today, 27 March 2015, said government aims to extend piped natural gas to one crore houses over the next five years.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 6.10 points or 0.02% at 27,463.68.

Gas utility companies rose. Gujarat Gas Company (up 0.01%), Gujarat State Petronet (up 1.74%) and Indraprastha Gas (up 0.33%) gained. Petronet LNG fell 1.99%. PSU gas distribution company, GAIL (India) fell 0.46%.

Among PSU OMCs, BPCL (down 1.87%), HPCL (down 0.37%) and Indian Oil Corporation (down 0.69%) declined. Higher crude oil prices weighed on the stocks. Higher crude oil prices could increase under-recoveries of PSU OMCs on domestic sale of LPG and kerosene at controlled prices. The government has already freed pricing of petrol and diesel.

Among PSU oil exploration firms, ONGC rose 0.18%. Oil India dropped 2.49%.

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, today, 27 March 2015, appealed to well-to-do sections of Indian society to voluntarily give up LPG subsidy, so that the benefit of the same could be shared more widely with poorer sections of society. Delivering the inaugural address at the global energy summit - Urja Sangam-2015 - in New Delhi, the Prime Minister said about 2.8 lakh people from across the country had already given up LPG subsidy. He said this was an important contribution for the service of the poor.

The Prime Minister called for enhancing domestic production to reduce the energy import burden of the country by at least 10%, till 2022 - the occasion of the platinum jubilee of India's independence. The Prime Minister complimented ONGC Videsh, Engineers India, and Barauni Refinery, for their successful journey of five decades, and called upon India's energy sector to plan for the next five decades with a global perspective. He said India, with one-sixth of the world's population, should shoulder one-sixth of the world's energy responsibility, hence contributing to global prosperity.

The Prime Minister said the Union Government aims to extend piped natural gas (PNG) to one crore houses over the next five years.

The Prime Minister called upon Indian energy companies to become multinational; work towards India-Middle East, India-Central Asia, and India-South Asia energy corridors; and establish gas positions in North America and Africa.

The Prime Minister highlighted various achievements of the Union Government, and reforms initiated in the energy sector over the last ten months. He said these reforms were motivated by the quest for greater energy security, which is both a necessity and responsibility. He said transfer of LPG subsidy directly into bank accounts through the world's largest cash subsidy transfer programme in the world - PAHAL - had resulted in elimination of leakages, and curbing corruption. He also mentioned deregulation of diesel prices, ethanol blended petrol to help sugarcane farmers, promotion of bio-diesel, and extension of the gas grid in eastern India, as some of the other major initiatives of the Government.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News