Govt slaps $3-bn penalty on RIL, Shell, ONGC in oil field arbitration

The government has ordered Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), Shell, and ONGC to pay a combined $3 billion as penalty over an arbitration award regarding the Panna Mukta Tapti (PMT) oil field, according to an Economic Times report.

The report, which cited people familiar with the matter, also said that RIL and Shell have appealed the arbitration award in a UK court. The report further added that the arbitration panel had upheld the government view that the profit from the fields should be calculated after deducting the prevailing tax of 33 per cent, instead of the 50 per