Transport chopper pilots to undergo proficiency check: Govt
Licence holders seeking to become pilot-in-command of transport helicopters will now have to undergo proficiency checks which will be valid for six months. The new norms would also be applicable for co-pilots of transport helicopters as well as that of transport aeroplanes. In this regard, the Civil Aviation Ministry has made amendments to the Aircraft Rules, 1937. This comes at a time when there are efforts to boost overall aviation safety in the country. “In order to act as a pilot-in-command or co-pilot on transport helicopters, the licence holder shall be required to undergo an appropriate proficiency check as specified by the Director General, in respect of the type of helicopter to be flown,” a recent ministry notification said. Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) would specify the relevant proficiency check and it would be valid for six months.
Campaign rush in poll season leads to windfall at Durgapur airport
Bengal’s sleepy greenfield airport near Durgapur has sprung to life with jet-setting VIP politicians flying in and out in the high noon of poll season. The airport has already earned an additional Rs 1 crore in a fortnight in landing and parking fees. Though commercial operations at Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport in Andal started in December 2015, it has taken off now with 85 chartered flights landing and taking off with the who’s who of politics on board. Prior to the campaign rush, the airport used to handle 10-12 flights in 15 days. From PM Narendra Modi to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the list of fliers who have used the airport is impressive. Home minister Rajnath Singh, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, human resource development minister Smiti Irani, junior information & broadcasting minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, BJP president Amit Shah and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi have all used the airport to campaign in Burdwan, Birbhum, Bankura and even Malda and Murshidabad. Trinamool’s Mukul Roy and Dev also used the facility; chief minister Mamata Banerjee did not land there but her chopper refuelled there as tax is not levied on ATF there.
India, U.S. to conclude pact on aircraft carrier cooperation
India and the U.S. may not have signed the Logistics Support Agreement as planned during Defence Secretary Ashton Carter’s visit early this week but both sides are close to finalising an Information Exchange Agreement (IEA) on aircraft carrier technologies, as well as cooperation on air wing operations for carrier Vikrant under construction at Kochi. The IEA will formalise the exact technology that the U.S. will share and at what classification level, design side, operations among other things, a senior U.S. Admiral said. Both sides had already signed the Terms of Reference on June 17, 2015 during the first meeting of the India-U.S. Joint Working Group (JWG) on carrier technology cooperation. “We provided them a draft when I visited them in February and it is going through the necessary channels of the Indian government to make sure you are ok with it. We are very close,” said Rear Admiral Tom Moore in an exclusive interview to The Hindu, in the US capital late last month. He is the U.S. Navy’s Program Executive Officer for Aircraft Carriers, and the Co-chair of the JWG. From the Indian side it is chaired by Vice Admiral G.S. Pubby, Controller for Warship Production and Acquisition. “It is a necessary document to take the next step. We have made a lot of progress over the last year,” he noted.
AAI likely to post all-time high revenue of Rs 10,000 crore
National airports operator AAI is expected to report an all-time high revenue of Rs 10,000 crore, with an estimated flat profit growth in the fiscal ended March 31 this year. The estimated eight per cent growth in the topline which stood at Rs 9,285 crore in 2014-15, is driven by the surge in passenger traffic as well as aircraft movement, particularly from Ahmedabad and Leh airports, a senior AAI official said. The state-run Airports Authority of India (AAI) was accorded ‘Miniratna’ status in 2008, granting it the right to exercise its powers of autonomy in terms of investment in projects and forming joint ventures. Of the 125 AAI airports, currently 95 are operational, with 70 of them having scheduled flights. “While the accounts are still being finalised, we estimate the revenue to touch an all-time high of Rs 10,000 crore in the last fiscal. The net profit during this period is also estimated at Rs 2,000 crore,” the AAI official said.
Will good times continue for the Indian flier?
That the Indian flier is price-conscious is clear from the rapid growth of low cost carriers (LCCs) in the domestic skies. Over the years, LCCs such as IndiGo Airlines, SpiceJet and GoAir gained market share rapidly at the expense of the full service carriers (FSCs) — more than 60 per cent of passengers in the country now fly with LCCs. Also, except Vistara, the new carriers in the Indian skies are all LCCs. Why, even the FSCs such as Jet Airways and Air India often price their economy class tickets around levels similar to those of LCCs. Low fares have invariably attracted the Indian flier, a case in point being the ongoing rapid growth in passenger traffic. Data from the listed airlines — Jet Airways, SpiceJet and IndiGo — shows that ticket fares came down quite a bit last year. For the nine months ending December 2015, the average fare on these airlines fell about 8-14 per cent year-on-year. This is despite the carriers retaining a good part of their fuel cost cut benefit. Many airlines, especially LCCs, have been coming up with flash sales. If you are lucky to get these limited tickets, you could fly quite cheap. Besides, carriers have been introducing special schemes to attract fliers. Not surprising, given the increasing competition; 10 airlines (5 old and 5 new) now jostle for passenger patronage. Jet Airways, for instance, lets you lock in rates for 72 hours, giving time to finalise travel plans. This flexibility costs ?350 on domestic flights and ?700 on international ones. IndiGo lets you cancel or change your booking any number of times, select a seat, and get a meal for an extra ?1,500. SpiceJet, for ?299, guarantees you a flight in 24 hours in case of delays, cancellations or missed flights. Some airlines offer discounts to customers who book tickets on their mobile platforms and apps. Airlines have also been using ‘fare unbundling’ to good effect to let passengers pick and choose services they want.
Aviation Soaring to the skies
The aviation sector in India has not had it this good in years. Passengers are taking to the skies in droves. At about 8.1 crore tickets, domestic passenger traffic during January to December 2015 was up more than 20 per cent year-on-year. The pace has only picked up in 2016 — traffic growth until February this year is more than 23 per cent. India is today the fastest growing major aviation market in the world. This stellar growth has been made possible primarily by the deep cut in the cost of aviation turbine fuel (ATF), the largest operating expense for airlines in the country. The rout of crude oil since June 2014 has seen ATF following suit, even if not to the same extent. At ?42,157, a kilolitre of ATF in Delhi today is about 40 per cent cheaper compared with two years back and 15 per cent over a year. This has translated into big savings for airlines. For instance, the country’s largest carrier IndiGo Airlines spent about 17 per cent less on fuel in the nine months ended December 2015 compared with the year-ago period, despite increase in its fleet size. As a result, its fuel cost as a percentage of sales fell to 31 per cent from 45 per cent a year ago.
India to boost investment in Iranian oil and gas sectors
India and oil-rich Iran today on Sunday to significantly expand engagement in their overall ties, particularly in boosting Indian investment in joint ventures in oil and gas sectors in the Persian Gulf nation where foreign investors from major economic powers are rushing in to get early footholds after lifting of nuclear sanctions. In talks between external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and her Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif, the two sides agreed that pending agreements such as Preferential Trade Agreement, Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement and Bilateral Investment Treaty should be concluded on a priority basis to spur trade and investment. Enhancing energy cooperation and development of the Chabahar port were the centrepiece of their talks which were mostly dominated by economic issues. “The talks were very successful and would give new energy to our centuries old ties with Iran. In particular, the economic partnership will get considerable fillip as a result of today’s forward looking talks,” ministry of external affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup told PTI. People familiar with the matter said the issue of Kulbhushan Jadhav was not at all raised by the Iranian side. Jadhav was reportedly arrested in Balochistan after he entered from Iran and was accused by Pakistan of planning “subversive activities” in the country. Both sides discussed the progress on the Chabahar project and agreed that the commercial contract on Chabahar as well as the modalities for extending $150 million credit for Chabahar Port should be signed in the “very near future”. Decisions on this line of credit, as well as $400 million credit line for supply of steel rails from India have already been taken by India. Swarup said both sides discussed the energy partnership and Iran invited greater Indian participation in its oil and gas sector. “Iran said it would be happy to participate in the refinery sector in India.” On the Farzad B oil field project, both sides took note of the constructive discussions held during the recent visit to Iran of oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan. “The Indian side welcomed the Iranian decision to keep the Farzad B field outside the auction basket. The concerned companies have been directed to complete their contractual negotiations in a time bound manner. Iranian side had earlier communicated their gas pricing formula and expressed their desire for Indian investment in the Chabahar SEZ,” he said. “In terms of connectivity, Iran said it supported India’s desire to join the Ashgabat Agreement. The two ministers reviewed the progress made in the International North South Transport Corridor. IRCON from India would be visiting Iran for discussions on the Chabahar–Zahedan Railway link,” said the spokesperson. On trade and investment, the two sides agreed that with the lifting of sanctions, the potential for expanding these ties was immense. “They agreed that pending agreements such as Preferential Trade Agreement, Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement and Bilateral Investment Treaty should be concluded on a priority basis,” said Swarup. Oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan had paid a two-day visit to Tehran from 9 April during which he discussed a range of issues relating to stepping up of engagement in oil and gas sectors. The two sides also reviewed the implementation of the Chabahar port project in which India is a key partner. Swaraj and Zarif also reviewed implementation of the decisions taken by the two countries during the last joint commission meeting in December. The two ministers also deliberated on situation in Afghanistan and in Syria besides other regional issues. New Delhi is looking to increase engagement with the sanction-free Iran by raising oil imports and possible shipments of natural gas. It also wants rights to develop Farzad B gas field in the Persian Gulf discovered by ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL). People familiar with the matter, however, said a deal for the field was not signed during Pradhan’s visit as Iranian Parliament, Majlis, is yet to approve the new Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC) under which the Farzad B field is to be given to the OVL-led consortium. Indian firms have so far shied away from investing in Iran for the fear of being sanctioned by the US and Europe. The same was deterring New Delhi from claiming rights to invest nearly $7 billion in the biggest gas discovery ever made by an Indian firm abroad. But after the lifting of sanctions, India is making a renewed pitch for rights to develop 12.8 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves OVL had found in 2008. Pradhan also conveyed to the Iranian side that both countries must expand the basket of oil and gas trade. He had expressed India’s interest in importing liquified petroleum gas (LPG) from Iran and said companies from both sides could discuss setting up an extraction plant in Chabahar, if required.
Kuwait oil workers begin open-ended strike
Thousands of oil workers in Kuwait began an open-ended strike on Sunday to protest against a government proposal to cut their wages, the head of their union said. The strike, which could slash production if prolonged, comes as world oil producers gather in Qatar to negotiate an output freeze to boost prices. “Thousands of workers began their strike,” the oil workers union chief Saif al-Qahtani told AFP, adding that production was partially halted without clarifying which sites had been affected. “Observed since 7:00 am (0300 GMT), this open-ended strike will continue until the workers’ demands are met,” Qahtani said. On Saturday, the union turned down an appeal from Kuwait’s acting oil minister, Anas al-Saleh, to call off the strike. Hit by the sharp drop in crude prices on world markets, Kuwait is introducing a new payroll scheme for all public employees and wants to include the country’s 20,000 oil workers, which would mean an automatic cut in wages and incentives. As the strike began, Kuwait Petroleum Corp spokesman Sheikh Talal Khaled al-Sabah said that the national oil conglomerate had activated an “emergency plan” to ensure that local and international markets were not affected by the walkout. “Export operations are going ahead as planned and (KPC) is capable of responding to major international market demands, based on agreements with clients,” he said in a statement published on the KUNA news site. The plan ensures that all petrol stations will continue to be supplied as well as Kuwait’s international airport and companies operating at the facility, he said. He urged Kuwaitis “not to listen to rumours that the strike has affected the needs of the local market,” adding that Kuwait’s “reserves of gasoline and petrol derivatives is enough to meet the country’s demands for 25 days and strategic reserves could suffice for 31 more days.” KPC is currently operating three refineries producing 520,000 barrels per day, in contrast to 930,000 before the strike, CEO Mohammad al-Mutairi said in a statement. KPC had offered to suspend all spending cuts if the union agreed to join a committee to negotiate a settlement. But the conglomerate said workers boycotted negotiations called for Thursday by the social affairs and labour ministry. The union is also protesting plans to privatise parts of the oil sector. Kuwait, OPEC’s fourth largest producer, pumps three million barrels per day.
Why India is about to pass Japan as Asia’s No 2 oil consumer
The old adverts for Exxon fuel used to say, “Put a tiger in your tank”. Indian motorists are doing just that. And soaring energy needs make this nation of almost 1.3 billion people the bright spot for global demand. Growth in global oil consumption is set to slow down this year: from a gain of 1.8 million barrels per day last year, to 1.2 million bpd this year, according to the International Energy Agency. This is driven by lower industrial use and mild winters in China, the US and Europe. Over the past decade, Indian oil demand growth, though significant, was far behind China’s. Slower expansion of manufacturing and creaking infrastructure, as well as lower income per person, held it back. But now a number of factors are driving a surge in Indian oil use. Its economy and population are growing faster than China’s, and it is pushing for more manufacturing under the “Make in India” initiative, and greater coal production (requiring diesel for haulage). In welcome news to those who have bumped along stretches of gravel masquerading as highways in Rajasthan or Uttar Pradesh, Narendra Modi’s government is building 30 kilometres of road per day. Only 20 Indians in a thousand have a four-wheeled vehicle, compared to 90 Chinese and 800 Americans. But now lower oil prices and rising incomes are making motoring more affordable: Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai had their best ever sales in India in the fiscal year to March. Air travel is booming, with passengers up 23 per cent on this time last year. Special factors include low rainfall, requiring more diesel to drive pumps for groundwater, although a strong monsoon is forecast for this year. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) demand is rising as the government encourages its use in rural households for cooking and lighting. Naphtha, a light oil, is going into new petrochemical plants. India is likely soon to overtake Japan as Asia’s second-largest oil consumer, and the world’s third largest (after the US and China). Demand growth of 0.3 million barrels per day this year would be a quarter of the global total, and about the same as the gain in China. Not surprisingly, at a time of low oil prices, the Indian market looks increasingly important to exporters. Given its geographic proximity, more than half of India’s 4 million barrels per day of oil imports come from the big Middle Eastern producers: Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait and Iran. Saudi Aramco is opening an office in New Delhi to help with crude sales, and Adnoc has agreed to keep oil in the strategic storage facility at Mangalore. After talks with Saudi Aramco, Mumbai-based Essar Group now seems set to sell a $5.5 billion stake in its refining business to Russia’s Rosneft. Indian oil imports from Iran have tripled since January. Meanwhile, after a long period of stasis, Indian oil companies appear to be looking abroad again, with ONGC, Indian Oil, Oil India and Bharat Petroleum paying some $4.2 billion in total for stakes in Rosneft’s East Siberian fields. An Indian consortium is now bidding for some of the remaining 22 per cent available in the Adco onshore concession in Abu Dhabi, potentially joining Total, Japanese and South Korean partners in a major realignment of the emirate’s energy relations. As anyone driving through Delhi or Bangalore at rush hour, or braving the capital’s murky skies, can attest, to continue its rapid growth, India will have to continue the current breakneck pace of road-building and introduce cleaner fuels. And India has been through several phases of reform and hiatus since 1990. Another slowdown may yet reduce demand growth, unlike China’s remorseless rise from the early 1990s. But the Mumbai motorist is emerging as one of the key factors of the global oil market, and a rare source of optimism for producers.
OIL running without full-time CMD for a year
‘Navaratna’ company Oil India Limited (OIL) is functioning without a full-time chairman and managing director (CMD) since July 1 last year. The post is being temporarily held by a Petroleum Ministry bureaucrat of the Odisha cadre, UK Singh. This lack of a full-time company head has not done any good to enhance OIL’s production figures, alleged company insiders, adding that the procrastination in appointing an OIL CMD has done much damage to the company’s image globally. Public sector top management personnel recruiter Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) has so far held two interviews to select an OIL CMD. On the first occasion, the company’s director (finance), Rupshikha Saikia Borah was selected, but her appointment was rejected by the Prime Minister’s Office, without citing specifics. On the second occasion, the PESB, after interviewing a dozen applicants, decided that “more applicants need to be interviewed”. Early this year, the Government of India constituted a “search committee” to select an OIL CMD, with three members: PMO principal secretary Nripendra Mishra, oil industry veteran Bikash Chandra Borah and MoPNG secretary, KD Tripathy (he is a 1980 batch IAS of the Assam Meghalaya cadre). A highly qualified professional, Northeast India’s first woman chartered accountant, Fulbright scholar, Rupshikha Saikia Borah, is also an alumnus of the Delhi School of Economics. She, despite her credentials, now appears to have lost an opportunity to be OIL’s first woman chief. The search committee has invited 15 persons for a viva voce on April 25 this year in New Delhi. This list does not have Rupshikha Saikia Borah’s name. This search committee has received about 60 applications for the OIL CMD post, including that of Saikia Borah, according to highly placed industry sources. A large number of IAS officers also applied, as a vital precondition was relaxed for this one instance. The waived condition was that IAS officers have to resign from civil service if they apply for a PSU (public sector undertaking) post. To sugar-coat this waiver, the IAS lobby also facilitated mid-term repatriation from OIL to their parent cadre, as if in a deputation post. This seemingly unfair term in favour of the IAS is being frowned upon in the petroleum industry, as IAS officers have not been vested with profitability and proficiency responsibilities, but an easy exit route, in case matters get too hot in the volatile oil industry. Sources said that the MoPNG search committee has shortlisted 15 candidates for the interview in New Delhi to select the next OIL CMD. These 15 include three IAS officials, who have almost nothing to do with the petroleum industry: Ravi Kapoor, Jishnu Baruah and Anil Kumar Jain. However, Jain, a Planning Commission/Niti Ayog mandarin, has to his credit a book on natural gas. Others in the list include petroleum sector veterans like Pramod Kumar Sharma, Rahul Dasgupta, Utpal Borah, PK Rao, Dr Ashutosh Karnataka, Saumendra Kumar Baruah, Dr Sunil Y Bharati and Bedanta Sarmah. Curiously enough, the lone accounts specialist in the list is Robin Deka, an IRAS officer of the Railways. NEEPCO director SB Buragohain’s name also features in the list.