Page 2 - Oil Ministry

BPCL divestment completely off the table, says Hardeep Singh Puri

Says OMCs can consider pump price cut if global prices stay at $75-80 per barrel

Govt relaxed about OPEC+ cutting oil output, says oil minister Puri

India's oil-buying spree comes as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, including Russia, are capping their production amid demand concerns

India's Russian oil import hits 12-mth low, long-term appetite intact

India's crude oil imports from Russia fell for a second straight month in January to its lowest in 12 months but the nation's insatiable appetite for Russian crude remains for the long term, according to data from energy cargo tracker and industry officials. Russia supplied 1.2 million barrels per day of crude oil to India in January, down from 1.32 million barrels in December and 1.62 million barrels in November 2023, according to data from energy cargo tracker Vortexa. Russia however continues to remain India's top oil supplier, accounting for a little less than a quarter of 4.91 million barrels a day of oil that the world's third largest energy consumer imported in January. The decline in cargoes from Russia was made up by increased sourcing from Iraq, which supplied 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in January, up from 985,000 bpd in the previous month. Supplies from Saudi Arabia declined to 659,000 bpd from 668,000 bpd in December. India is more than 85 per cent dependent on .

Interim Budget 2024-25: OilMin bats for retaining energy transition fund

Rs 30,000 cr was announced in last year's Budget but never disbursed

Govt launches 9th round of oil, gas blocks for bidding, ONGC wins big

In the ninth bid round, 28 blocks, with an area of approximately 136,000 square kilometres, are on offer for bidding

Fuel retailers hike ethanol procurement prices by Rs 6.87: Oil ministry

The new purchase price of 56.28 rupees per litre is aimed at boosting production of ethanol, which is used for blending with petrol

No takers for rupee payment for oil imports: Oil ministry in Parliament

India's push for rupee to be used to pay for import of crude oil has not found any takers as suppliers have expressed concern on repatriation of funds and high transactional costs, the oil ministry told a parliamentary standing committee. The default payment currency for all contracts for import of crude oil is US dollar as per the international trade practice. However, in a bid to internationalise the Indian currency, the Reserve Bank of India on July 11, 2022 allowed importers to pay with rupees and exporters be paid in rupee. While there has been some success with non-oil trade with a select few countries, rupee continues to be shunned by oil exporters. "During FY 2022-23, no crude oil imports by oil PSUs was settled in Indian rupee. Crude oil suppliers (including UAE's ADNOC) continue to express their concern on the repatriation of funds in the preferred currency and also highlighted high transactional costs associated with conversion of funds along with exchange fluctuation ...

Crude oil refining output rose 2.2% to 21.9 MMT in July: Oil Ministry

Domestic crude production rose 2.1 percent to 2.5 million metric tonnes

Govt evaluating option of building gas storage, says oil secretary

The modalities for building storage will be worked out after a feasibility study, he added

India eyes nationwide use of 1% of SAF for domestic airlines by 2025

India plans to mandate the use of 1% of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for domestic airlines by 2025, oil minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday, in a bid to cut emissions from the sector

Oil Ministry panel proposes ban on 4-wheeler diesel vehicles by 2027

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India should ban the use of diesel-powered four-wheeler vehicles by 2027 and switch to electric and gas-fuelled vehicles in cities with more than a million people and polluted towns in order to cut emissions, an oil ministry panel is recommending.

Hardeep Singh Puri confident of meeting 20% ethanol blending target in FY25

Oil minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday exuded confidence of meeting the target of supplying petrol mixed with 20 per cent ethanol by 2025, five years earlier than the previously planned roll-out in 2030. Petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol was rolled out at select petrol pumps in 11 states and Union Territories in February as part of a programme to increase use of biofuels to cut emissions as well as dependence on foreign exchange-draining imports. At present, 10 per cent ethanol is blended in petrol (10 per cent ethanol, 90 per cent petrol) and the government is looking to double this quantity by 2025. "I am sure we will be able to supply 20 per cent ethanol blended petrol by next (fiscal) year," he said. India saved as much as Rs 41,500 crore in forex outgo from 10 per cent blending besides benefiting the farmers, he said at a biofuels conference here. Puri said India achieved blending of 10 per cent ethanol in petrol in June 2022, five months ahead of the schedule. "We

Centre cuts all windfall tax on domestically produced crude oil from today

Previously in March, the Centre had slashed the windfall tax by Rs 900 per tonne to Rs 3,500 per tonne from Rs 4,400 per tonne

OilMin accepts all major Kirit Parikh panel recommendations on gas pricing

Final cabinet note being prepared, but Finance Ministry yet to submit comments on key issues

Petroleum Min inks pact with International Energy Agency on data sharing

The government on Tuesday signed a pact with the Paris-based IEA for strengthening cooperation in the field of data and research and for enhancing global energy security, stability, and sustainability

Energy transition has to ensure surviving present: Oil minister Puri

India, the world's third largest oil consumer, on Tuesday said it is committed to energy transition but surviving the present and cushioning the vulnerable from price volatilities is essential before moving to clean and green energy. India has committed to net zero carbon emission by 2070 and has repeatedly emphasised that 'dirty' fuels like oil and coal, on which the economy is two-thirds dependent, will have to continue to be in use in the foreseeable future. An immediate shift from low-priced coal and oil to expensive fuels of the future such as hydrogen will entail huge costs in a nation with low per capita income. "Unless we survive the present, we will not be able to go into the world of clean and green energy," Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said at India Energy Week here. "While affordable traditional energy resources are essential for meeting the base load requirements, new sources of energy which are cleaner, sustainable, and innovative, are critical for combating the ..

Indian Oil chairman will soon also be its managing director, say sources

Most big listed companies globally are run by a managing director or CEO and a chairman presiding over the board of directors with the primary responsibility of protecting the interests of investors. But, India's largest oil company Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is an exception for never having a managing director or CEO in its 63 years of existence. IOC, the nation's largest oil refiner and retailer of fuels like petrol and diesel, has always been headed by a chairman, who has also discharged the role of a managing director or CEO. But this is likely to change soon with the Oil Ministry agreeing to redesignate the top job as chairman and managing director, sources aware of the matter said. The company has long been demanding for such a change to bring it on par with other large public sector and private firms. That demand has now been agreed to by the firm's parent administrative ministry and is now awaiting concurrence of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), they added. IOC ..

Oil ministry to seek compensation for petrol, diesel losses from FinMin

The oil ministry will seek compensation from the finance ministry for the losses state-owned fuel retailers incurred on holding petrol and diesel prices in the last eight months despite a spike in cost of raw material, a top official said on Friday. Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) posted a combined net loss of Rs 21,201.18 crore in April-September. This loss would have been higher but for them accounting for Rs 22,000 crore yet-to-received LPG subsidy for past years. "The first half losses are publicly available. Add to that the LPG subsidy and you would arrive at approximate loss they have incurred," the official said. Since holding of the prices benefited the economy in terms of not add to the already high inflation rate, there is a case for the oil marketing companies (OMCs) to be compensated, he said. "Petrol and diesel prices are deregulated (not controlled or dictated by the government). OMC

Kirit Parikh panel suggests gas price of $4-6.5/unit for old fields: Report

In its submissions to the Oil Ministry on Wednesday, Kirit Parikh Panel has also asked the government to remove caps on gas prices in three years

India will do all that is required to ensure energy security: Hardeep Puri

Reacting to the decision of Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday said India will do all that is required to ensure its energy security and affordability. He said if required, India will go for diversification of energy sources. "This is their (OPEC's) sovereign right what they want to do but equally it is my job to point out that all actions have consequences, intended or unintended. India will be able to navigate through the situation with confidence," the petroleum and natural gas minister said at GEO India 2022 conference here. "We will not allow any shortages to come in. The government will do all that is required to ensure energy security and affordability," he said. Puri said as per the estimate of the sector, consumption of fuel will increase and 25 per cent of the global demand in next 20 years will be from India. Therefore, he said, the prime minister took the .