Power for all in Odisha by March 2019, says CM Naveen Patnaik
Even though around 40% families in the state are yet to get electricity connections, the state government on Friday announced to ensure 24×7 uninterrupted power supply for all households by March 2019. Reviewing the status of rural electrification here, chief minister Naveen Patnaik directed the energy department to complete electricity connections to remaining 1,318 habitations by May 2017. Then power will be supplied to individual households. He also directed the department to ensure electricity connections to all BPL households in next two years. Officials of the energy department informed the chief minister that electricity connection to all villages in Nuapada, Kandhamal, Nabarangapur and Malkangiri districts (the four highly-focused districts of the state government) would be ensured within the next six months. The energy department is working to ensure electricity connections to primary and community health centres and ST/SC hostels on a priority basis, said an official, who attended the meeting. As the state government has already launched a scheme worth Rs 2,600 crore to set up 500 new 33/11 kv substations to strengthen the power distribution network and to provide seamless electricity supply across the state, the chief minister emphasized on timely completion of the sub-stations. Of total 500 sub-stations, 433 are proposed in rural areas, the officer said. Naveen also reviewed the status regarding development of special feeder line for fisheries and agriculture sectors and directed to complete the task by next six months. Dustin Hopkins Jersey
ONGC allowed loot, plunder of equipment: Parliament panel report
Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has asked the government to probe the role played by oil ministry officials in delaying a decision on awarding the Ratna and R-Series fields, as well as ONGC executives for allowing “loot and plunder of equipment and take stringent action against them. The PAC report, tabled in Parliament on Friday, said the ministry’s indecision “directly compromised national interest on energy security and stringent action may be taken in this matter”. PAC said ONGC allowed “plundering and looting” of equipment from offshore platforms of fields by not putting in place effective security systems. “Non-maintenance of oil-producing fields by ONGC and subsequent plundering and looting from the sites is a sheer failure of a public sector undertaking in looking after the nation’s property,” the report said. Last year, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) had said the 16-year delay in award of Ratna and R-Series fields caused a loss of Rs 26,000 crore to the exchequer. The fields, 90km southwest of Mumbai, were awarded in February 1996 to a consortium of Ruias-promoted Essar group and UK-based Premier Oil through an international bidding process as per then prevailing policy for discovered fields. ONGC retained 40% stake as the original licensee. Subsequently, however, disputes over terms of the award delayed handing over of the fields to the consortium. Last year, the government finally restored the fields to ONGC. But in the 16 years that went by when the field idled, much of the equipment was stolen or became unserviceable. “ONGC’s own inspections reported the facts of ‘plundering and looting’ of platform utilities and equipment… As per ONGC’s own estimate of 2010, cost of repair itself of these facilities would be Rs 1,086 crore,” the CAG had said last year and projected a loss of Rs 26,000 crore to the country due to the 16-year delay in awarding the fields for production. Striking a similar refrain, the PAC report said ONGC “should have maintained the fields as being a PSU it would have anyway recovered all its expenses sooner or later”. Carlos Baerga Womens Jersey
LPG woes: Cash crunch threatens to turn off stoves
The demonetisation effect has entered the family kitchen now as the deadline for paying the scrapped notes for LPG cylinders expired on December 15 and there is ashortage of smaller currenciesin the system. Worse still, the LPG dealers are unlikely to get swipe machines in the near future because there is a shortage of them in the market due to the high demand. The market is flooded with Rs 2,000 notes, thanks to the ATMs full of them. Banks are also giving at least 80 percent of cash in these notes. “The loose change is gone from the market as it is not being replenished by the banks. As there was a hoarding of higher denomination notes, the lower denomination notes are in demand now. Given the situation, we are unable to book the refill cylinder of LPG,” Sushma Jadhav, a teacher in a private school, residing in Pathardi area, said. Similar is the case with Kailas Adhav of Panchavati who had booked a refill cylinder on December 13 and had to send the delivery boy back after he said he had no change. “He came to our house and on December 16 with the cylinder, but my wife had to send him back because she had Rs 2,000 notes and and no change. She tried to get change from a private shop that had a PoS machine, but in vain,” he said. The shortage of change is creating problems for people. “We have change but that is largely being used for important needs like grocery and vegetables. But the LPG dealers can bring the swipe machines,” Sanjay Narkhede, a shopkeeper said. The situation is still bad in rural areas where banks do not have enough branches to dispense cash to farmers. “We have to travel 15 km for an ATM, forget any bank branch. We are not tech savvy and cannot use cards or net banking. How will we buy refills? Till December 15, the Rs 500 notes were allowed, but now that is not the situation. Besides, the internet connection is not friendly,” Abhijeet Kadam, a residnet of a village in Niphad, said. The LPG distributors have their own story to tell. “Some people are paying exact change, but the number those rejecting delivery of cylinders has shot up. The deliveries are being rejected mainly because people do not have cash these days. Most delivery men bring back at least one cylinder per day,” said a distributor. A senior official of a petroleum company said people using smart phones know that they can pay online at the time of booking, but those who not tech savvy are unable to do that. “Requests for swipe machines have been made by distributors and are waiting for the receipt of the same,” the officer said. “It is a major headache to buy a POS machine on rent. The online transactions have grown from 0.5 percent to about 2 percent after demonetization, but are not enough for a distributor to bear the charges of the POS machine. Besides, distributors will have to give one POS to every delivery person, which means at least about five machines per distributor. Who will bear the rents is a major question,” said a distributor. “The USSD code used for money transaction without internet connection is a good option but the problem is that people are not familiar with it. Even we are not aware of it at this point of time. The petroleum companies should conduct some workshops and display boards to create awareness among people,” another dealer from Nashik Road said. Howie Morenz Authentic Jersey
Iranian company launches CNG kit in India
An Iran-based company has zeroed down on the diamond city to launch its CNG kit for the two-wheeler segment, first time in Gujarat and India. Officials from ITUK Manufacturing India Limited, a subsidiary of TUK Manufacturing based out of Tehran, the capital of Iran, were in the diamond city to launch the CNG kit for two-wheelers at the Gujarat Gas Company Limited’s (GGCL) CNG filling station at Pal on Friday. Company officials stated that Surat in particular has the highest penetration of CNG powered vehicles in the entire state. Apart from savings from CNG, there is a huge impact on environment as scooter segment comprises of nearly 17 per cent of the total vehicle population of Surat and 23 per cent of the total two-wheeler population. Every year more than 25,000 new two-wheelers are purchased by the citizens in the diamond city and this number would be in exponentially higher in the State of Gujarat. ITUK has its manufacturing plants including the one located in Pune, other than Tehran the capital of Iran, which manufactures all parts indigenously in India including the regulators, valves, mixers, seat and frames etc. Reto Berra Jersey
BP strikes deal for 10 percent stake in Abu Dhabi’s ADCO concession
BP became the second Western oil major to renew a 40-year onshore concession in Abu Dhabi on Saturday after almost two years of negotiations to improve terms to help operate the United Arab Emirates’ biggest oilfields. The British oil company signed an agreement with state-run Abu Dhabi? National Oil Company (ADNOC) giving it a 10 percent stake in the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations (ADCO), which operates the concession. “BP becomes a 10 percent shareholder in ADCO,” ADNOC said in a statement. ?”The agreement includes BP becoming asset leader for the Bab asset group within the concession.” The ADCO concession, including the Bab, Bu Hasa, Shah and Asab fields, has total resources of between 20-30 billion barrels of oil equivalent over the term of the concession. ?The fields produce 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) and are expected to reach 1.8 million bpd from 2017. Total (TOTF.PA) was the first oil major to renew the concession, securing a 10 percent stake in January last year and putting its peers under pressure to improve terms after ADNOC said the French company made the best offer. Asian and other Western oil firms also bid for stakes after a deal with major oil companies in the concession first granted in the 1970s expired in January 2014. Total and BP had both held 9.5 percent equity stakes in the ADCO concession since the 1970s. Shell (RDSa.L) and Exxon (XOM.N) were also partners in the old concession. Since then other Asian energy companies were granted smaller stakes.? INPEX Corporation (1605.T) of Japan, and GS Energy of South Korea GSHOLE.UL received 5 percent and 3 percent stakes respectively. ADNOC said it “continues to look for partners to take up the remaining 12 percent stake of the 40 percent earmarked for foreign partners.” As part of the deal, BP said it would issue 392,920,353 of new ordinary shares to be held on behalf of Abu Dhabi’s government at a price of 4.47 pounds ($5.58) per ordinary share.
GAIL ready to invest Rs 350 million on CNG
The National Green Tribunal (NGT), eastern zone bench, has given the chief secretary (CS) 15 days to decide whether Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) should be entrusted with natural gas distribution in the city through a pipeline by itself or a joint venture company should be set up for this. The gas major plans to complete its 2,539km long pipeline from Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh to Haldia by 2020. It proposes to distribute gas in seven cities, including Kolkata, enroute. Environment activist Subhas Datta had moved the NGT in September last year, to introduce natural gas in Kolkata. The green bench had passed several directions, after which the state government and GAIL have been at loggerheads with technical issues regarding the CNG distribution. In August, the NGT had directed the CS to take up the matter with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and GAIL. When this didn’t happen, the bench directed senior officials including the CS to attend a meeting convened by it on December 7. Nearly 30 people attended the meeting while the CS chose to stay away. On Friday, the bench of justice SP Wangdi and professor PC Mishra expressed displeasure at this. “We didn’t convene the meeting to grace or glorify us. We are keen to introduce green and clean fuel in Kolkata,” the bench observed before going through an affidavit submitted by GAIL. In the affidavit, GAIL wrote, it is making efforts to complete the pipeline by December 2019, and laying a distribution network in Kolkata would cost nearly Rs 350 million. Eric Sogard Womens Jersey