Govt plans to bring oil firms' private pipelines under PNGRB oversight

Oil ministry plans to amend the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act to bring oil firms' captive pipelines under regulatory oversight, enabling third-party access & uniform safety standards

India’s oil and gas sector could soon witness a major regulatory shift, as the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas is preparing to bring privately used, or “captive”, pipelines under the supervision of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB), according to a report by The Economic Times. 

The ministry plans to introduce changes through amendments to the PNGRB Act. Currently, the law refers to such infrastructure as “dedicated” pipelines — used solely for a company’s internal operations — and does not explicitly recognise the term “captive”, which is often used by oil firms.   

 

Push for common carrier status

Under the existing law, PNGRB has the authority to declare a dedicated pipeline a “common carrier” or “contract carrier”, depending on its usage. Common carriers must allow third-party access, which many state-run oil companies have been reluctant to accept. They fear it could result in a decline in their market dominance if private players gain access to their infrastructure, the news report said. 

In December 2022, PNGRB had written to major state-owned oil firms — Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum — urging regulation of their dedicated pipelines to ensure fair play and protect consumer interests. 

“The intent of bringing such pipelines under the ambit of PNGRB is to protect the interest of consumers by fostering fair trade and competition... and monitoring of compliance of technical and safety standards,” the regulator wrote in its letter.

 

EU sanctions to hit Indian oil exporters

Recent European Union sanctions on Russian crude products are likely to push Indian refiners to depend more on intermediaries and traders to maintain overseas sales. 

Indian private refiners like Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy are likely to face challenges after the EU’s 18th round of sanctions against Russia, news agency Reuters reported. The new rules ban imports of petroleum products made from Russian crude, even if refined in a third country, affecting key export markets. 

Reliance, India’s top buyer of Russian oil, exported nearly 2.83 million barrels of diesel and 1.5 million barrels of jet fuel per month to Europe in 2025, which accounted for about 30 per cent and 60 per cent of its exports of these fuels. The new sanctions will be implemented gradually over six months. 

Nayara Energy, which is backed by Russia’s Rosneft, is also sanctioned under the new package. With these developments, Indian refiners may increasingly rely on traders to divert their products to alternative markets.