Government likely to rank State Transport Corporations
The Narendra Modi government will soon come out with a policy to reward the best-performing state transport corporations through central funding to move to less polluting electric buses and set up charging and maintenance infrastructure. The scheme being conceptualised by the transport ministry will involve ranking of the state transport corporations across the country on the basis of financial performance, connection to towns and villages and condition of bus terminals and passenger amenities. The best performing ones will be shifted to electric mobility gradually. In the first year, the ministry wants around 5,000 such buses to go on road to be increased to almost 30,000 in the second. “Currently, state transport corporations incur heavy losses because of bad management and high maintenance and operations cost. The ones which perform well as per our performance standards would be given electric buses,” a top roads ministry official said. “It will bring down running cost by almost half. Currently, on an average, every transport corporation makes losses to the tune of `20 per km. Electric mobility will completely wipe out their losses, besides saving a lot on carbon emissions,” the official said. The government is separately working on a policy to move India to electric mobility in a major way by 2030 as a part of its green initiative. Separately, a proposal to buy almost 2 lakh e-cars for government departments, ministries and other bodies is also being considered. In a recent interview to ET, roads transport and highways minister, Nitin Gadkari said the government would come out with the electric vehicles policy by the end of the year. Gadkari added his ministry will soon have a fund to procure such buses. Gadkari’s ministry has already floated a proposal saying that electric taxis should be exempted from all permits and various state taxes to make acquisition and operation of such cars as commercial vehicles easier and cheaper. “With the kind of volume that India will give to these companies is going to be unprecedented. The ministry has already offered sops such as land to Tesla to manufacture in India. Once we make a visible push towards electric mobility, such companies would come on their own,” the official said. Tom Compton Womens Jersey
NDA beats UPA, rolls out roads faster
The government’s work order for highway expansion has shot up by 122% during the first three years of Modi government and the pace of construction has gone up by 25%, according to data released by the road transport and highways ministry. During 2011-2014, daily highway construction was about 13 km in comparison to 17 km during the three years’ of Modi government. The acceleration in award of works to road builders — over 11,000 km on an average in the past three years against only 5,000 during UPA’s corresponding period — has significance considering that this will translate into actual construction of roads by April 2019 when the government faces election. It is expected that by 2019, the government will be in a position to achieve more than 30 km of highway construction per day, a source said. Highways minister Nitin Gadkari has set the target of pushing daily highway construction to 41 km. Highway development is considered one of the biggest job generators and increased road connectivity has been recognised as a major contributor to economic activities even in the hinterlands. However, for the current financial year, the government has set the target of awarding at least 30% of highway projects on public private partnership (PPP). Last year only 17% projects were bid out on PPP mode. Similarly, shipping ministry data show high increase in capacity of 12 major ports under government from 745 million tonnes in 2012-13 to 1,065 million tonnes in 2016-17. The total cargo handled at all these ports have also increased from 570 million tonnes in 2011-12 to 648 million tonnes during the last financial year. Officials said there has been a greater cohesive planning in the road, rail, shipping and waterways sectors to improve connectivity, which was missing during the earlier government. Target for smart tags The government has set the target of a three-fold increase in installation of FASTags in vehicles in the next one year. Till March end, about 4.1 lakh such tags have been fixed in vehicles, which allow these vehicles to pass through toll plazas on highways without waiting at toll gates. At a meeting chaired by PM Narendra Modi earlier this month, the roads ministry has been asked to increase it to 15 lakh by April 2018 and 25 lakh by 2020. Paul Molitor Jersey
UDAN may hit air pocket with MIAL, give only 8 slots for RCS flights
The government’s ambitious UDAN scheme may hit air pocket with the Mumbai airport authorities allocating only eight slots for the RCS flights. The Civil Aviation Ministry had sought 20 slots from the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) for operating flights to unserved and under-served airports from the country’s second busiest aerodrome. “Since we have severe slot constraints and are unable to accommodate the request of even scheduled carriers for more flights, we could provide only eight slots for the RCS flights,” a source said. The GVK-AAI run Mumbai airport, which has become the world’s busiest airports with a single-runway operations, handled 837 flights a day or one in 65 seconds on an average in fiscal 2017, taking over London’s Gatwick airport that had 757 flights a day. It handled 45.2 million passengers in the last fiscal, accounting for 18.6 per cent of the total air traffic in the country. “We also have request from the government to provide slot for a flight to Shirdi airport, which is expected to commence operations soon,” the source said adding that the Government is well-aware of the slot crunch at the Mumbai airport. When contacted, MIAL spokesperson was not available for comment. The ‘Ude Desh ka aam Nagrik’ (UDAN) scheme, under which airfares have been kept at Rs 2,500 for a one hour flights, is aimed at making the air travel more affordable and providing air services to the hinterland. In the first round of UDAN bidding, five airlines won bids to operate on 128 routes connecting 70 airports, of which 31 are un-served. Davante Adams Womens Jersey
Business as usual won’t help Air India balance books: Ashok Gajapati Raju
Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju today said Air India’s books are “bad”, and “business as usual” is not going to help it, but the Government wants the airline to survive. AI is grappling with “legacy” issues, he added. The minister’s remarks came against the backdrop of Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani stating in a Facebook post earlier this week that the massive debt on Air India’s books is the root-cause of all its woes. Lohani termed the over Rs 48,000 crore debt as “insurmountable” and blamed the policies of the erstwhile UPA government for its precarious finances. “Air India is a lovely airline. It has all legacy issues. Its finances are very bad…The books are so bad that the business, as usual, is not going to help it,” Raju told reporters here, after inaugurating Integrated Operational Office Complex building of the AAI, DGCA and the BCAS. “It is a nice airline, and I would like it to survive,” he said, adding that he is “open” to suggestions from any quarters for the airline’s turnaround. “Of course there are people who praise it, there are people who bash it. I am not one of the bashers. But I am also not a blind praiser,” he added. Air India, which is surviving on a Rs 30,000 crore bail-out package spread over 10 years announced by the Manmohan Singh government in 2012, is working on ways to improve its financial position. In the 2015-16, the airline posted an operational profit of Rs 105 crore on account of low fuel prices and increased passenger numbers. Currently, its debt is estimated to be a little over 48,000 crore, with nearly a third of borrowings on account of the aircraft acquisition. A consortium of 19 lenders has extended loans to the national carrier. It is looking to re-jig a debt of Rs 10,000 crore under the scheme for the sustainable restructuring of bad assets floated by the Reserve Bank. Anthony Castonzo Jersey
Government tells NITI Aayog to draw a road map for ailing Air India
Amid the dilemma over spending Rs 50,000 crore on health, education or airline, the government has tasked NITI Aayog to devise a road map for ailing Air India, which may include recommendation for a strategic sale. The latest push to set the house in order in the beleaguered state carrier has been spearheaded from the top. Sources said the NITI Aayog is looking at various options and will submit its recommendations in the next few weeks after which the government will take a final call on the way forward. This is the most serious effort being launched by the Modi government to tackle the mess in Air India. The then Vajpayee government had jump-started efforts to sell a stake in Air India and the then disinvestment minister Arun Shourie had promised to push ahead with a strategic sale even if one bidder was in the fray . But ultimately, the plans fell through and Air India continued as a state-run entity . “Why should we continue to put thousands of crores in Air India when we can utilise the money for several social sector projects,“ said an official, who did not wish to be identified. Estimates suggested that the airline has liabilities of over Rs 52,000 crore, with the interest burden alone esti mated at Rs 4,000 crore annually. While Rs 25,000 crore has been pumped in over the last five years,a similar amount has been committed till 2032 but still Air India will have an annual cash deficit of Rs 3,000 crore. Alarge part of the blame is on the way the national carrier was operated during 200507 when an aircraft acquisition plan of Rs 50,000 crore was cleared for an airline with a turnover of around Rs 15,000 crore, putting the national carrier under a severe debt burden, which it is finding tough to service. Officials have also blamed the Air India-Indian Airlines merger for the current mess. But the government is now finding it tough to sustain the ailing airline given its commitment to fiscal consolidation and the focus having shifted to welfare, for which it needs to spend more on health and education. Air India has loans of Rs 48,400 crore -working capital and term loans of Rs 22,000 crore, aircraft-related debt of Rs 19,000 crore, and Rs 7,400 crore that it had raised via non-convertible debentures (NCDs). Air India has been trying to get lenders to cut the interest rate on loans of Rs 10,500 crore, on which it pays 10.1%.The debt servicing alone comes to about Rs 4,000 crore per annum for the airline. John Elway Womens Jersey
Iraq replaces Saudi as top oil supplier to India in April: Trade flow data
Iraq replaced Saudi Arabia as top crude supplier to India in April as refiners moved to boost their processing margins by purchasing the cheaper Basra Heavy oil grade, ship tracking and Thomson Reuters trade flow data showed. India’s April imports from Iraq topped 1 million barrels per day (bpd) for the first time, up by about a third from March and 8 percent from a year ago, according to ship tracking data obtained from sources and data compiled by Thomson Reuters Oil Research & Forecasts. “Basra heavy is good for refineries with coker units, it is also good for conventional refiners that make bitumen as that is in demand in India. Also (the crude) is available at discounts so it is value for every dollar that we spend,” said M. K. Surana, chairman of Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Indian refiners in recent years have invested heavily in modernising plants to more efficiently process low grade crudes into diesel and gasoline, helping to boost operating margins and giving greater flexibility in the oil grades they can buy. This has allowed refiners in the third-largest oil consumer to shop around during periods of tightness, and remain profitable in a fast-growing, cost-sensitive market. India’s crude mix is highly diverse as a result, with just over 15 percent of its flows stemming from Africa in April, nearly 13 percent from Latin America, and most of the rest coming from the Middle East. Saudi Arabia, usually India’s main supplier, shipped about 750,000 bpd to the South Asian nation in April, a decline of about 5 percent from the previous month and 8 percent from a year ago, the data showed. With each barrel of Iraq’s Basra Heavy oil trading at roughly $2.85 less than a barrel of Saudi Arabia’s Arab Heavy mix when the deals were done, Indian importers were able to realise a substantial cost-savings by making the switch, without much impact on product output. India’s lower Saudi purchases were partly due to firmer Saudi prices following the production cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) since January. Iraq is OPEC’s second-largest producer after Saudi Arabia, but so far has been resistant to an aggressive cut given its reliance on oil revenues to fund its economy. “Iraqi oil is a good alternative to other heavy grades from OPEC. Basra is sold at a huge discount to Dubai or other heavy grades in spot markets, whereas Saudi oil is available only at the OSP (Official Selling Price),” said Ehsan Ul Haq, Senior Analyst at KBC Energy. A delay to Venezuelan oil loadings due to problems at a major port helped to boost India’s demand for Iraqi oil, and India also took more Russian Urals crude. Iran emerged as the third-biggest oil supplier to India in April, replacing Venezuela, which slipped to the fifth spot, behind Nigeria, the data showed. Harold Baines Jersey
Energy storage market for off-grid renewable energy in India to touch Rs 16,500 crore by 2022: CEEW
The energy storage market for off-grid renewable energy in India would be worth Rs 16,500 crore by 2022, according to a report released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) during the Solar India Expo 2017. CEEW, the policy and research partner for Solar India 2017, shared the key findings of the analysis at the Expo. “Rooftop solar will itself account for 80 per cent of the total energy storage market for off-grid renewables and will be worth INR 130 billion (USD 2 billion) in 2022,” the report said. The report adds that the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy’s target to install 10,000 micro-grid or 500 megawatt (MW) of micro and mini-grids will offer an additional opportunity to the tune of Rs 3,300 crore for battery manufacturers. ”Batteries are a critical component of micro/mini-grid systems, since 100 per cent backup is often required to supply electricity to rural households during evening hours,” the report noted. The analysis provides an overview of the current Indian energy storage market for off-grid solar segment, examining multiple storage technologies under development and assessing opportunities arising due to rapid adoption of off-grid renewable energy. “Though a number of projects for grid-connected storage are being called for, the markets that are served poorly by the existing grid – mobile towers in remote locations, petrol pumps, ATMs are easy pickings for storage systems to cater,” said Dr Arunabha Ghosh, Chief Executive Officer, CEEW. According to CEEW, higher cost of energy storage solutions limits rooftop solar system installation to cater to base load. “Solar PV systems with energy storage could be a potential replacement to existing diesel generators and it would also save about Rs 4-5 per unit of electricity, compared to diesel, for industrial and commercial consumers,” the report said. CEEW’s analysis finds that advanced battery technologies could support rapid deployment of rooftop solar installations in the commercial and industrial segment. Benoit Pouliot Authentic Jersey
India ranked second in renewable energy attractiveness index
India has moved up to the second spot from third position in this year’s ‘Renewable energy country attractiveness index’ released by EY. This is primarily due to a combination of strong government support and increasingly attractive economics, EY said in a statement. According to the statement, India continued its upward trend in the index to second position with the government’s programme to build 175 GW in renewable energy generation by 2022 and to have renewable energy account for 40 per cent of installed capacity by 2040. The country has added more than 10GW of solar capacity in the last three years – starting from a low base of 2.6 GW in 2014, it said. “In the medium term, as renewable energy penetration rates increase, the government will have to turn its attention to the ability of India’s grid to manage intermittent renewables, especially around the evening peak, when solar availability falls away,” Somesh Kumar, Partner & Leader, Power & Utilities, EY India, said in the statement. The cost and availability of energy storage technology could dictate how close India gets to meeting its renewable targets. Meanwhile, India’s regulators must be mindful of the erosion of electricity market peaks caused by growing volumes of renewables and storage – this can undermine the economics of thermal power plants, risking the stability of the system as a whole, he added. The report also noted that the Indian government needs to increase compliance with the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) as well as ensure that India’s distribution companies, many of which are financially distressed, have the capacity to continue to purchase renewable electricity, especially if bid prices level off or rise. As the availability of capital remains a concern, the government could ease rules around tapping foreign debt. Also, the government’s additional emphasis on photo voltaic (PV) parks will help to plug the gap, but it needs to do more to encourage rooftop solar installations, it said. The report cites that China, which has been ranked first in the index, and India have surpassed the US, which fell for the first time since 2015 to third place in the ranking of top 40 countries, follows a marked shift in the US policy under the new administration. The report identifies the US government’s executive orders to rollback many of the past administration’s climate change policies, revive its coal industry and review the Clean Power Plan as key downward pressures on renewable investment attractiveness. Economically viable renewable energy alternatives coupled with security of supply concerns are encouraging more countries to support a clean energy future. Kazakhstan (37), Panama (38) and the Dominican Republic (39) have all entered the index for the first time, it added. Norman Powell Womens Jersey
Piyush Goyal wants no hindrance to possession of electricity connections
Power Minister Piyush Goyal today endorsed the idea of providing electricity connection to consumers other than property owners like tenants and said it does not create any right over ownership. “Electricity connection does not prove the ownership of the property. Some states are afraid that providing power connections would lead to claims over properties,” Goyal told reporters here after a press conference on this Austria and UK visit at FICCI. He further said, “The Uttar Pradesh government is working on norms for providing electricity connection to all (including tenants) in a way that it does not create ownership of the power customer. It is already there in Maharashtra. We cannot deprive of anybody from electricity supply.” About the RBI’s observation that issuance of bonds under UDAY scheme affecting state finances, he said, “I wish the RBI will apply little more logic to what they have said to them because ultimately it was the debt of the state only.” The UDAY scheme was launched in November 2015 for reviving the debt-stressed state power distribution utilities. Under the scheme, the state had to repay 75 per cent of the debt by issuing bonds. Elaborating further the minister said, “It was state discom debt which is taken over by the state. It was always a fact that it was state debt. I have made de facto into de jure. I have made it legally a state debt. I think we have done a good job and RBI will understand what we have done.” About the idea of taking over of Coal India Provident Fund merger with the Employees Provident Fund Organisation, he said, “We don’t do anything which is not in the interest of workers. Coal mines worker PF body is very small and does not have the required skill to get the best returns on investments.” He explained, “The EPFO looks after lakhs of crore workers fund. The have got skill sets and expertise to handle it. We (in Coal India) subcontract that to the lowest bidder. I don’t think that it is very efficient way to do it so better let the efficient people do the whole job.” Talking about the result of the interaction in Austria, he said it has resulted in a delegation coming from Austria to India in June. The minister expressed hope that they would invest and work in India to aid government’s Make in India programme. The minister lauded London Stock Exchange (LSE) as they demonstrated their commitment to India by advancing their launch of international securities market exchange. India raised $1.1 billion through NTPC’s masala bond at 7.25 per cent interest rate at the LSE. The minister had floated the NTPC bonds on the LSE last week. Joe Flacco Authentic Jersey
Gulf Petrochem Group Marks First-Ever Bunker Supply by Barge at Indian Port of Paradip in Odisa
Gulf Petrochem Group, the UAE based global bunker supplier, has set another milestone in its operations with the successful execution of the first-ever bunker supply by barge at the non-conventional port of Paradip in Odisa, India’s east coast in a joint effort with Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL). Gulf Petrochem arranged for the supply of 810 metric tonnes of bunker fuel IFO 180 CST by barge, which marks a major achievement for the company. Typically, supplies were made to the non-regular bunker port of Paradip only by Road Tanker Wagons (RTW) and for small volumes. MT Dolphin, a bunker barge, was introduced to expedite the supply of the 810 MT cargo to the vessel MV COUNTESS I, highlighting a major triumph for both Gulf Petrochem and the Port of Paradip. IOCL, the only physical supplier, had recently introduced the duty-free 180 CST for vessels calling at Paradip. But the supplies were made through RTWs at berth. With the introduction of MT Dolphin, bigger future volumes of bunker fuel requirement at the port can be seamlessly met. Mr. Manan Goel, Group Director of Gulf Petrochem, said: “The supply of bunker fuel by barge to Paradip will significantly scale up the efficiency of the port, and underlines our commitment to strengthen our operations and deliver truly value-added services. In future, larger volumes of bunker fuel can be supplied that will facilitate bigger vessel arrivals to Paradip, with it evolving as a strategic port on the east coast of India. We were venturing into uncharted waters, and are thankful to the support of all our partners for their close coordination that made the planning and execution smooth.” With Gulf Petrochem supplying to MV COUNTESS I, future bunker supplies at berth or inner anchorage can be executed by barge. MT Dolphin is a IV class barge of 500 MT capacity of Fuel Oil and 50 MT of Gas Oil, with a pumping rate of 150 MT-200 MT per hour for FO and 25 MT for Gas Oil. Gulf Petrochem will also arrange for the supply of smaller quantities by RTWs at berth of up to 250MT supplies in a single day. Gulf Petrochem, a worldwide bunker supplier, has bunker facilities in the UAE, India, Singapore and the entire Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Antwerp (ARA) region through its representative offices. About Gulf Petrochem Group Gulf Petrochem Group is a leading player in the oil industry, specializing in Oil Trading and Bunkering, Oil Refining, Grease Manufacturing, Oil Storage Terminals, Bitumen Manufacturing, and Shipping and Logistics. Headquartered in United Arab Emirates, and having a presence in South Asia, the Far East Asia, Africa and Europe, Gulf Petrochem has emerged as one of the well-established manufacturers and traders of petroleum products in major parts of the world. Garrett Grayson Womens Jersey