Talks on for gas pipeline from Chittagong to Tripura: Pradhan
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has taken up with Bangladesh for laying a pipeline for carrying natural gas from Chittagong to Tripura to meet the crisis of cooking gas (LPG) in the North-eastern region, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said. “We are laying a pipeline for transportation of diesel from Siliguri in West Bengal to Parvatipur in Bangladesh. There is pipeline for carrying diesel from Numaligarh oil refinery in Assam to Siliguri. “In exchange, we have given the proposal for a gas pipeline from Chittagong to Tripura. We are pursuing the matter diplomatically and I would also visit Bangladesh soon,” Pradhan told reporters here. The pipeline if approved by the Bangladesh government would be laid by the side of the rail lines which pass near the Indo-Bangla international border, he said. Pradhan launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in Tripura here and distributed LPG connection to 20 below poverty line (BPL) families. In Tripura 0.922 million households are having LPG connections and efforts are on to bring 100 per cent coverage in the days to come. The Oil minister also laid the foundation for a new grassroots bottling plant here with 60 TMTPA capacity with an estimated cost of Rs 1.43 billion which would be completed by 2019. Pradhan said, now about 0.45 million households are covered by the existing bottling plant out of total 0.922 million households having LPG connection. With the completion of the new bottling plant the capacity of supplying LPG would be doubled and most of the households would be covered, he added. Dan Feeney Jersey
Indian Oil Corp approves buying up to 50% stake in GSPL LNG
Indian Oil Corp has approved buying up to 50 per cent stake in GSPL LNG. It has approved first stage expansion of its Gujarat refinery to 18 mmtpa of crude oil processing capacity at an estimated cost of Rs 150.34 billion. First stage approval for installation of a second catalytic de-waxing unit at Haldia refinery at an estimated cost of Rs 11.26 billion has also been received First stage approval for installation of ethanol plant using gas fermentation technology of Lanzatech USA at Panipat refinery for Rs 4.41 billion has also been received. Vadim Shipachyov Womens Jersey
GAIL seeks reworking of US LNG price deal
GAIL, India’s biggest gas transporter, has deals to buy 5.8 million tonnes of US LNG per annum for 20 years. “We need to be in sync with the market, whether it is buyer or seller. So, if market dynamics has changed and there is a glut of gas the world over with falling rates, the same should also reflect in our prices,” a source said requesting anonymity as the talks are private. GAIL, he said, is approaching US LNG sellers to reopen the contracts. It wants to renegotiate the 2011 sales and purchase agreement (SPA) with Cheniere Energy for import of 182.5 trillion British thermal units of LNG (equivalent to approximately 3.5 million tons) annually, with yearly fixed fees of USD 548 million and a term of 20 years. GAIL had agreed to pay Cheniere a price of USD 3 per million British thermal unit (mmBtu) plus 115 per cent of the final settlement price for the New York Mercantile Exchange Henry Hub natural gas futures contract for the month in which the relevant cargo is scheduled. Also, 15 per cent of the fixed portion of the contract sales price will be subject to annual adjustment for inflation. The source said GAIL wants the fixed portion to be lowered to bring down landed cost of LNG to around USD 7-8 per mmBtu as against the present USD 9.7. LNG in the spot or current market is available for less than USD 6 per mmBtu. US supplies are scheduled to begin from the next year. Cheniere, currently the only US company exporting LNG, is reportedly not in favour of reopening the signed contracts as it expects the signed ‘take-or-pay’ agreements to be honoured. Besides the 3.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG from Houston-based Cheniere, GAIL has booked 2.3 mt a year capacity at Dominion’s Cove Point liquefaction facility. GAIL had previously sought reopening of the August 2009 deal for import of 1.44 mt per annum of LNG for 20 years from Australia’s Gorgon project. Gas from Gorgon is indexed at 14.5 per cent of prevailing oil rate. The indexation agreed was one of the highest in the world. Gorgon LNG at an oil price of USD 50 per barrel would cost USD 7.25 per mmBtu at the loading port. Added to that will be shipping cost and import duty as also the cost of converting the super-cooled liquid gas back into its gaseous state, taking the price to USD 9.5. ExxonMobil-led Gorgon has not accepted the demand so far. In 2015, India renegotiated price of the long-term deal to import 7.5 million tonnes per year of LNG from Qatar, helping save Rs 80 billion. The price of imported LNG under this agreement had been linked to crude oil (Japanese Customs Cleared Crude or JCC) and had a concept of floor and ceiling indexed to last 5-year average. The rate thus arrived was higher than spot LNG. A renegotiation of the deal was sought and RasGas of Qatar agreed to modify the pricing formula to link it with last 3-month average rate of Brent crude oil, the source said. Gerald Everett Jersey
ONGC Videsh to pump $150 million in Colombia, Kazakhstan & Bangladesh
ONGC Videsh, the overseas arm of the state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp, plans to invest $150 million in exploration this fiscal year to drill more wells in Colombia, where it just made a commercial discovery, as well as in Kazakhstan and Bangladesh. ONGC Videsh, which operates the CPO-5 block of Colombia, has made a commercial discovery in its exploration well Mariposa-1, managing director Narendra Verma has said. The company is now drawing up plans for the development of the Mariposa-1well that has begun a test production of 4,500 barrels per day, he said. The success has also opened opportunity for further exploration in the block. “To chase this lead, we plan to drill two more wells,” Verma said. ONGC has 70% participating interest in CPO-5 block in which the remaing 30% stake in held by Amerisur Resources of UK. ONGC has participating interest in a total of six blocks in Colombia. This includes a producing block whose current output is 35,000 barrels per day. ONGC has also accelerated its exploratory efforts in Kazakhstan and Bangladesh. Drilling has begun in the Kazakhstan block in the Caspian Sea while preparations are on to drill the first well in Bangladesh. “We are hopeful Kazakhstan drilling will end up in success,” Verma said. In all, the exploratory effort would require $150 million of investment this year, Verma said. ONGC Videsh plans to make a total capital spending of $1 billion in 2017-18 in exploration, development and production across all its projects. ONGC Videsh’s production jumped 40% in 2016-17 mainly on 26% stake acquisition in Russia’s prolific Vankor fields. The output is expected to rise further 15% in the current fiscal year to 14.35 million tonnes of oil equivalent (mtoe). “We are actively working towards meeting our target of 20 mtoe by 2020,” said Verma. The company has also entered Namibia’s oil and gas sector with a purchase of 30% interest from Tullow Oil in the African country’s three oil blocks. ONGC Videsh’s investment in the Imperial fields of Russia will likely get some production boost after an associated gas processing plant comes up. The tender for the plant has been awarded and it would be ready in about 18 months, Verma said. This would help push up oil production from the field by 4000 barrels/day from the current 7000 barrels/day. Claudio Reyna Authentic Jersey
Jets’ Sheldon Richardson likes Marcus Mariota
Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota is enjoying a productive rookie year, And justifying Tennessee drafting him second overall. Though the Titans are 3 9, Including 3 7 in games he played, Mariota has 19 touchdown passes and nine interceptions. He ranks 12th in the NFL with 95.1 quarterback rating. Over his past five games, He has 10 touchdown passes and four picks. In last week’s win over the Jaguars, He threw for three touchdowns and ran for another an 87 yard scramble. He has run for 249 yards this season (8 yards per rush). Jets defensive end Sheldon Richardson noticed all of this on film, As he prepares for Sunday’s meeting with Mariota. Richardson admires Mariota’s potential, But knows the Jets have a chance to exploit his inexperience. “You still see rookie tendencies, [like] Holding the ball too long, Richardson told NJ Advance Media. “But that also comes with his young receiving corps, too. So they pretty much hurt him a little bit right there. “He’s hitting open receivers, So he’s still a threat. Very few overthrown balls from short to medium [range]. If they’re not open early, Then he’s holding the ball until someone is open. He’s not always on target, Especially with his deep ball. From medium to short range passes, He’s on point, RELATED: The road back for Revis The Jets’ pass rushers especially Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson love to see a quarterback hold onto the ball. Mariota’s top target is tight end Delanie Walker, Whose 67 catches are more than double the next closest Titans player. Tennessee’s wide receiver leaders this season, By catch total, Are Kendall Wright (33), Harry Douglas (23), Justin Hunter (22), And Dorial Green Beckham (21), Though Hunter is on injured reserve. Douglas is an eighth year pro, But Wright, Hunter, And Green Beckham are in their fourth, third, And first season, Respectively. Richardson, A third year pro, Takes all that into account when he assesses Mariota’s potential. “He’s going to be in the league for a long time, Richardson said. “Rookie struggles like any other rookie quarterback, But the help around him has got to improve, too. You can’t just blame everything on the quarterback, Like everybody wants to. But hey, He’s managing with what he’s got, And he’s doing his thing, For Mariota, That means using his absurd athleticism to run. Sometimes, That has involved read option plays the Titans installed, To take advantage of his skills. Sometimes, It’s just Mariota taking off when a lane opens. “That’s always something to worry about, Richardson said. “You can’t let that slow your rush down. If you get to worrying about that, too, It plays some mind games with yourself, The message from Jets defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers and coach Todd Bowles this week revolves around pass rushers staying in their lanes, And not straying from those areas. If they stray, Mariota might have an opening. This is particularly important for the Jets, Because they play a lot of man to man pass coverage in the secondary. In man coverage, Defensive backs typically have their backs turned to the quarterback, As they run with receivers. Rodgers said that on Mariota’s 87 yard touchdown run last week against the Jaguars, They were playing man coverage. “Guys were running with their backs turned, And they don’t see him until it’s too late, Rodgers said. “They were in a six man rush, And he broke contain and he was out the gate. So that’s something we’re definitely stressing this week, Middle linebacker David Harris said that any time the Jets play man coverage, “It’s the job of the front to keep him in the pocket. If you’re the edge rusher, You’ve got to keep him inside. He’s probably the fastest running back we’ll face this year. You’ve just got to be mindful of it when you’re blitzing, Or the edge [Rusher] Gets behind the line of scrimmage, Richardson and Wilkerson still want to rush Mariota hard and fast, But they must do it smartly, Within the confines of their rush lanes. “Just making sure we’ve got guys in front of him and we’re closing the pocket down on him [From the sides], Wilkerson said. “You never slow down as a rusher just because he’s a running quarterback, Jets report card, As they move closer to playoffs with comeback win at Giants Sometimes, Though, A player with Mariota’s elusiveness manages to get loose regardless of a defense’s best intentions. “You can try as hard as you can, To try to contain him, Said nose tackle Damon Harrison. “But when you’ve got a guy that athletic, He’s bound to break contain on a play or two, Marvin Williams Womens Jersey
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd to venture into gas biz: CMD D Rajkumar
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) plans to venture into gas business and diversify resources for source of fuels as part of its five-year plan, a top official said today. “BPCL under the next five-year plan has set a target of Rs one lakh crore to be spent for all its expansion activities which includes marketing, refining etc…,” BPCL chairman and managing director D Rajkumar told reporters here. “We want our market cap to reach Rs 2.50 lakh crore. That is 2.5 times increase of what it is now. We have also planned to venture into gas business. That will be our next value chain,” he said. To a query, he said, the company has taken up ‘an experiment’ to import crude oil from the United States under its ‘diversification’ exercise. “We have imported two cargos of crude (from US) as an experiment. That is one (cargo) with crude with high sulphur and another (cargo of) crude with low sulphur. One million barrels each. This is basically with a view to diversify resources that are available to us”, he said. “We really want to ensure that the prices are kept within the limits. For that it is necessary we source it from the right sources. We have been looking at various sources. Whatever we import, the crude will be refined in our existing refiners within the existing configuration”, he said. “Right now, what we are trying to do is to diversify our sources in an efficient manner.”, he said. Talking about the company’s financial performance, he said BPCL clocked Rs 2.42 lakh crore revenue with a profit after tax at Rs 8,339 crore. “We hold market share of 24 per cent and our market cap is more than Rs one lakh crore”. To a query on expansion of outlets, he said the company currently has 14,000 outlets across the country. “In Tamil Nadu, we have about 4,524 outlets. Depending upon demand we will expand”. Josh Archibald Jersey
TAP makes substantial progress in financial turnaround of Air India
The Government of India had approved a Turnaround Plan (TAP) / Financial Restructuring Plan (FRP) for operational and financial turnaround of Air India. The TAP/FRP provides equity infusion of Rs.30,231 crores upto 2021 subject to achievement of certain milestones. Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today said that Company has made substantial progress in both operational as well as financial areas as per TAP Milestones. As a part of the turnaround strategy, the company, with the overall support of the government, has initiated a number of steps in order to cut costs and losses. These steps, inter-alia, include the following: i. Route rationalization of erstwhile Air India (AI) & Indian Airlines (IA) route and elimination of route network involving parallel operations. ii. Rationalization of certain loss making routes. iii. Enhanced utilization of new fleet resulting in production of higher Available Seat Kilometers (ASKMs). Andre Smith Authentic Jersey
Three-pronged strategy cleared for Air India disinvestment
The Cabinet committee of economic affairs (CCEA) has finalised a three-pronged strategy for the disinvestment of Air India — demerger and strategic disinvestment of three profit making subsidiaries, hiving off of certain assets into a special purpose vehicle and treatment of unsustainable debts of the ailing carrier. The three profit-making subsidiaries are the low-cost airline Air India Express Ltd, the ground handling company Air India Air Transport Services Limited and Air India’s joint venture with SATS Limited for ground handling activities in Delhi, Mumbai, Trivandrum and Bengaluru. The process will be piloted by the Air India Specific Alternative Mechanism (AISAM) comprising finance minister Arun Jaitley, civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, transport minister Nitin Gadkari, Railways minister Suresh Prabhu and power minister Piyush Goyal. In addition to laying a roadmap to take care of the massive debt that Air India has incurred over the years, the assets that are to be incorporated in the ‘shell companies’, the committee will also decide on the quantum of disinvestment of the parent company and its subsidiaries and take decisions about the bidders. The decision was taken at a CCEA meeting on June 28. The Niti Aayog had submitted its recommendations on the strategic disinvestment of Air India and five of its subsidiaries on May 12, citing the carrier’s monthly losses to the tune of Rs 200-250 crore as the primary reason why such a move is required. Air India’s cash deficit is expected to double from Rs 1,050 crore in 2015-16 to Rs 2,069 crore in 2016-17, according to the provisional figures in a report submitted by the ministry of civil aviation to the standing committee on transport, tourism and culture. In a note the ministry has argued that since there are several Indian owned private airlines operating in the domestic and international sectors, there is no need for the government to be involved in the aviation business. Air India caters to 42 international destinations in 27 countries and 72 domestic stations with its subsidiaries. The airline has 142 aircraft including 15 wide-body B777s, 24 B787s and four B747 aircraft and 65 narrow-body A320s. Its subsidiary Air India Express has 23 B737-800 aircraft and Alliance Air has a fleet of 11 ATR 72 aircraft. Andy Lee Authentic Jersey
High Profits Boost Foreign Refineries’ Scramble for Nigerian Crude
Shortage of certain grades of crude oil in the international market following production cuts by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC, coupled with booming refinery profits, have forced foreign refineries in the United States and Asia to scramble for cargoes of Nigerian crude. This latest development is in contrast to recent months when the loading of cargoes of Nigerian crude had lingered after the programmes were issued by the producing companies. At the peak of the militant attacks on oil and gas infrastructure in the Niger Delta in 2016, which led to the declaration of force majeure by the international oil companies (IOCs) on four Nigerian grades of crude oil, supply disruptions had created delivery uncertainties that forced crude buyers in India and the United States to shun Nigerian crude. For instance, India’s Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited had cancelled a vessel it chartered to carry two million barrels of Nigeria’s Qua Iboe following the force majeure declared by ExxonMobil on the exports of this grade of crude oil. ExxonMobil had declared the force majeure on Qua Iboe after a drilling rig working for another oil company damaged its pipelines. The development had prompted the state-run Indian Oil Corporation Limited, which is a major buyer of Nigerian grades to cancel the tender for Qua Iboe. Also, Indonesia’s Pertamina, which is also a buyer of Nigerian crude, shunned the Nigerian grades and opted for Congolese Coco, Angolan Girasol and Saharan Blend from Algeria. Pertamina had said it shifted its preferences as a result of the violence in the Niger Delta, which made the delivery of Nigerian cargoes uncertain. The Senior Vice-President of ISC Pertamina, Daniel Purba, had told Reuters that the firm was “monitoring” Nigeria, but “currently it’s still not affecting crude purchasing”. However, Reuters has reported that the booming refinery profits are helping Nigerian oil producers sell cargoes quickly, aided by the crisis in Venezuela, and the shortage of certain types of crude amid OPEC production cuts. Competition among buyers has boosted offers for Nigeria’s Forcados grade to as much as $1.70 above dated Brent, while offer levels climbed for nearly all other Nigerian grades. Crude buyers are said to be keen on buying Nigerian crude partly due to strong profits for sulphur-rich fuel oil, which is boosting demand for Nigerian oil. Nigerian crude has lower sulphur content and produces more fuels such as gasoline. Though light crudes suffered because most production additions this year, from US shale, Libya and Nigeria, were light crude, the shortage of certain grades as a result of OPEC cuts led some buyers to shift to light oil. According to reports, the long-suffering Nigerian grades are finding keen buyers in the United States and Asia as refineries run full steam on strong margins. While the United States refinery margins were said to have rallied to a two-year high on Tuesday, Europe’s refinery runs were also said to be on track for a six-year high for August before Europe’s largest oil refinery went into an unplanned shutdown over the weekend. CM Punk Jersey
Spot power price falls to Rs 2.49 per unit in July
The average spot price of power fell 4 per cent to Rs 2.49 per unit in July 2017 from Rs. 2.59 per unit in the previous month in June at the electronic power trading platform, Indian Energy Exchange (IEX). “The average Market Clearing Price (MCP) during the day (08:00 to 18:00 Hrs) and the night (01-06 Hrs and 24 Hrs) was Rs 2.18 per unit while during the evening peak (19:00 to 23:00 Hrs) the average MCP was Rs 4.03 per unit,” IEX said in a statement. The spot market witnessed total trade of 3,669 million units (MU) marking a 6 per cent decline from 3,920 MU traded in the previous month with 118 MU traded on a daily average. “With rains continuing in most parts of the country except in South, the demand for power eased a bit,” the statement said. The market pre-dominantly remained a buyer’s market with average daily sell bids of 216 MU exceeding the average daily buy bids of 139 MU with the highest trade of 166 MU on 30 July, 2017. According to IEX, July saw an increase in inter-state transmission congestion mainly on account of import of power by Northern and Southern States which were constrained 10 percent and 15 percent of the time respectively. “One Nation, One Grid, One Price was realized on 10 days in July, while in the last month, one price was realized on 27 days,” IEX said. The daily average loss due to congestion on the inter- state transmission network was 1.64 MU compared to overall loss of 6 MU and daily average loss of 0.2 MU in June with the overall loss of 51 MU. The average Area Clearing Prices (ACP) across regions in July were — Rs 2.54 per unit in North, Rs 2.59 per unit in South and Rs 2.45 per unit in the rest of India. July saw as many as 1,005 participants trading in the spot market on an average daily basis with the highest participation of 1,068 participants traded on 15 July, 2017. Marshawn Lynch Womens Jersey