PM Modi’s single election trip causes crores in losses and wastes approx 40,000 tax paying Indians’ time
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been the biggest star campaigner for the BJP in the ongoing assembly polls in five states, namely Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa. And, just like in the past, the ‘hard-working’ prime minister has been spending most of his time on campaign trail than in Delhi. Experts say that Modi leaving Delhi so frequently from Delhi causes huge losses to the exchequer as well as putting the lives of thousands of people at risk. Former Air Force Officer and Janta Ka Reporter’s resident aviation expert, Squadron Leader (retired) Khalid Ehsan, said, “When an Indian VIP leaves for airport, traffic blockage and diversion begins on road at least 30 minutes in advance. All aircraft stop to land or take-off or start or taxi, approximately 20 minutes prior to the planned departure. “And if the VIP in question gets delayed, which is pretty common, thousands of passengers in aircrafts are forced to wait both in the air and on ground for him or her to arrive at the airport and then takeoff. Many aircrafts hold 100 nm away from Delhi for 15 to 30 minutes, for VIP to clear 100 nm air zone.” Explaining further, Squadron Leader Ehsan said that that such paraphernalia posed huge safety risk to passengers and added unnecessary costs to exchequer. “Because the VIP, in this case is the PM, there is stricter security protocol, with vehicles running on both sides of the VIP aircraft escorting it till the takeoff point. Cost of this delay is borne by the airlines; with the in-flight holding charge amounting to Rs 10 lakh per aircraft for a 30 minute wait. This delay also has a telescopic effect on commercial aviation for at least four to five hours. “Consider 20 arrival and 20 departure from Delhi delayed by 30 minutes for 5 hours. This is equivalent to 100 hours lost in serving Super Ego VIP. And the financial cost reaches a whopping Rs 10 Cr. The same drama is repeated when the VIP returns. In other words, Modi’s each visit to election rally and return costs Indian taxpayers Rs 20 Cr. This has a knock on effect on 200 flights and if we were to assume that each flight has 100 passengers, such VIP visit has just wasted the time of 20,000 tax paying Indians. And what did he do? He made public speeches for his political party in the election. And who suffered? 40,000 Indians in airport and many more on roads.” Sqn Ldr Ehsan said that it was time these ‘VIPs were banned from Indian roads and using public airports” adding that the important leaders such as Modi ought to have used the Hindon air base than Delhi Airport. Peyton Manning Authentic Jersey
More wind power projects to go under hammer next fiscal
Buoyed by drop in tariff to record low of Rs 3.46 per unit in the first auction of wind power, the government is mulling putting on the block more such projects next fiscal. “Transparency which is the hallmark of the Modi government, has brought down the tariff of wind power. There will be more and more such projects on the block,” Power, Coal, Mines and New & Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal told PTI. Asked whether he is expecting wind power tariff to fall further in a more competitive environment, he said: “That is the beauty of tariff based competitive bidding. We cannot predict the tariff. It is the bidders who decide what price should be quoted. I cannot interfere in that.” Goyal was of the view that the average wind tariff was hovering above Rs 5 per unit earlier due to feeding of rates and lack of transparency. “We will be looking at more wind power projects auction in the next financial year. We will formalise it. We have not decided yet on the quantum as it all depends upon the states demand because the projects are backed by them,” New & Renewable Energy Secretary Rajeev Kapoor said. The wind power tariff has been decided so far on the basis of inputs provided by power regulators such as cost of land and equipment and borrowing expenses. However, the feed in tariff used to remain same for the periods as long as 25 years and there was no fuel cost involved as in the case of thermal power. An industry expert said that now the feed in tariff would not survive for a very long time and there would more and more auctions in wind power segment in view of success of the first auction concluded yesterday. The wind power tariff touched record low of Rs 3.46 per unit in first even auction conducted last week by the state- run Solar Energy Corp (SECI) where firms Mytrah Energy, Green Infra Wind Energy, InoxBSE 2.00 % Wind Infrastructure Services, Ostro KutchBSE 4.96 % Wind and Adani Green Energy emerged as the lowest bidders. The auction witnessed aggressive bidding despite an advisory issued by industry body to avoid bold bids. The Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association had reportedly issued an advisory to some players before the auction started in view of uncertainties due to the GST implementation. The auction assumes significance because India has set an ambitious target of having 60 GW of wind power capacity by 2022. The wind power deployment in the country started in early 1990s. The current wind power installed capacity is nearly 28.7 GW, accounting for over 9 per cent of the total installed capacity of 314.64 GW as in January, 2017. Globally, India is at the fourth position after China, the US and Germany in terms of wind capacity installation. The Centre has set an ambitious target of 175 GW power from renewable energy resources by 2022 and out of this, 60 GW has to come from wind power. Max Scherzer Authentic Jersey
Govt auctions 1,000 MW of projects at Rs 3.46 a unit
India’s ambitious green energy programme took a giant leap as the country’s first wind energy auction has seen tariff dropping dramatically to Rs 3.46 per unit, mirroring the steep fall in the solar power sector and giving coal-fired plants another emission-free and competitive rival to worry about. Solar tariffs have already fallen to Rs 2.97 per unit after a series of auctions in recent years in which companies that quoted the lowest tariff were awarded projects. “These are exciting times, cleaner times. Our intention is to provide affordable 24X7 power, yet protect the environment and leave behind a brighter and cleaner future for the next generation,” Piyush Goyal, the minister for power, coal, renewable energy and mines, told ET. The auction, conducted by Solar Energy Corporation of India, invited bids for 1,000 megawatts of wind projects that could be set up anywhere in the country. The winners are Mytrah Energy (India) Pvt Ltd, Green Infra Wind Energy Ltd, Inox Wind Infrastructure Services Ltd and Ostro Kutch Wind Pvt Ltd, all of whom quoted the identical tariff of Rs 3.46 per kwH and have been awarded 250 MW each. Adani Green Energy (MP) Ltd also quoted the same tariff. An additional project of 250 MW is likely to be awarded to it, even though the original auction was for only 1000 MW. There were 10 bidders in all. The rest quoted higher tariffs. So far, wind tariffs were set by regulators of the nine states producing wind power, unlike solar projects which for some years have been auctioned and awarded to companies quoting the lowest tariff. Wind energy tariffs have varied from a high of Rs 6.04 per unit in parts of Rajasthan to Rs 4.08 for some projects in Maharashtra. Most have varied from Rs 4 to Rs 5 a unit. Other states where wind energy is generated are Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. The idea of holding wind power auctions had been mooted by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) nearly a year ago, though three earlier attempts to hold them — once by Karnataka and twice by Rajasthan — had proved unsuccessful, with various legal issues raised by wind power associations holding them up. In October last year, however, the government issued a formal notice to auction 1000 MW of wind power projects. The last dates for submission of bids and their opening were twice deferred, until they were finally opened on Thursday. Earlier this month, solar tariffs dropped to an all-time low of Rs 2.97 per kwH during the bidding to set up segments of a 750 MW solar project in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh, which is likely to be the largest solar plant in the world. The lowest solar bid till then had been Rs 4 per kwH. Minister Goyal tweeted: “After solar cost reduction below Rs 3 per unit, wind power cost down to Rs 3.46 per unit through transparent auction. A green future awaits India.” The fall in wind tariff is in some ways more significant than its solar counterpart. “There is some degree of government support in the (750 MW) MP solar project,” said Ashwini Kumar, managing director of SECI. “But for these just-auctioned wind projects, there is none.” To encourage investment in renewable energy, the government has a scheme of providing viability gap funding (VGF) for renewable energy developers. But in the current wind auction, none of the winning developers have sought VGF. Most of the new projects are expected to come up in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. As of December 2016, India had installed wind power capacity of 28,700.44 MW.
As solar shines, time to balance generation
Last week, the winning bid for a solar project in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh, offered a levelized tariff of about Rs3.3 per unit (with first year tariff at Rs2.97). That’s 24% cheaper than the Rs4.34 per unit offered by the winner of the Bhadla solar park project in Rajasthan in January 2016. Such a plunge in tariff was made possible only because the developer, under a power purchase agreement, has been assured of the following: timely and complete payment security, prevention of shutdown of the solar power plant during grid instability or unavailability of transmission line, ensuring free land availability for construction, and assuring transmission or evacuation facility for offtake of power. In other words, many material risks were off the table. Such sweetheart deals may not be available for all upcoming solar bids since it will be largely dependent on the credit-worthiness of the electricity buyer, availability and price of land, and transmission modalities. In other words, the solar tariff of about Rs3.3 would remain a pipe dream if risks related to payment, curtailment, land and transmission are not mitigated in future projects. Theoretically, such tariffs also mean the solar sector has reached grid parity in terms of not just the power purchase cost of new thermal electricity generating stations, but also the all-India average pooled power purchase cost of discoms. To be sure, policymaking corridors are reverberating with calls to replace new capacity addition in thermal with solar, but that would be an uninformed move without taking an integrated view on addressing peaking shortages, efficiency of thermal generation, grid management, overall balancing cost, and the socialization charges of solar generation.Essentially, this would require addressing four flanks. First is that there is a mismatch in the timing of generation and peak electricity demand—demand peaks in the morning and evening, when solar generation is not possible. Also, with batteries and storage still expensive, increasing solar share would require greater balancing with hydro/gas-based power to smoothen out the variability and peak demand. In other words, commensurate investment in hydro/gas would be needed to maximize solar generation. Second, there is the milieu to contend with. While the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has reported a power surplus situation, demand has been sluggish in the past one year. Additionally, about 40 GW of thermal power plants are under construction. All that means is growth in solar will have an impact on the plant load factor (PLF) and efficiencies of existing and new thermal projects. In other words, their cost of generation and the overall cost of power in the grid will rise. The CEA, in its recent draft National Electricity Plan (NEP), projects thermal PLFs to be at 48% if capacity addition in renewables is 175 GW by 2022, and at 54% if it is 125 GW (which is the CEA’s bear case capacity addition). Such low PLF levels will not only have an impact on the commercial viability of projects, but also lead to inefficient thermal generation that affects sector viability and sustainability of environment. For instance, any reduction in PLFs beyond a threshold will lead to higher station heat rate, and consequently higher coal consumption and poor efficiency. Therefore, capacity addition in renewable energy needs to be synchronized with the ecosystem such that efficiency loss in thermal and the balancing cost is minimized. Third, there is a limit to how much inconstant power a local grid can support, which can cause stability issues. A target of 175 GW translates to around 75% of India’s peak load requirement by fiscal 2022. Absorbing such a high quantum of inconstant power will require access to a greater balancing area. While most of the capacity addition in renewables has taken place on a state-level basis, there is a need to encourage interstate transactions for such energy. For example, Jharkhand, which invited solar bids for 1,200 MW as against its local peak demand of close to 2,000 MW, will most likely face challenges in efficiently managing grid issues in the near term. This will require successful implementation of the availability-based tariff mechanism, good forecasting capacities, scheduling framework at the state level, and implementation of electronic metering infrastructure. Fourth and last, while the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission currently exempts inter-state transmission charges for renewable energy, there is a need to re-evaluate both the direct and indirect impact of renewable energy on transmission charges in the context of loading excess cost on other forms of power generation. The direct impact of renewable energy is that associated transmission charges fall on thermal counterparts, while the indirect impact will be because of reduced utilization of transmission capacity owing to the lower PLF of thermal projects. So while falling solar tariffs augur well, the sustainability of an aggressive capacity-addition target of 125 GW for renewable energy will depend on balancing cost, efficiency of thermal generation, grid management, and investments in hydro- and gas-based power to meet peak demand. Carlos Rodon Authentic Jersey
Why Punjab should not provide free power; state can reward farmers via cash
Who will form the next government in Punjab next month is currently sealed in the ballot boxes. In the mean time there are reports that the Election Commission has written to the home minister reinforcing its demand to make electoral bribery a cognisable offence. But what about the assurances made in election manifestos which promise moon before election? Can that not be checked by the Election Commission? The reference is to Punjab elections where all major political parties have promised to waive-off farmer loans. That means any incoming party will be under tremendous pressure to fulfil its promise of loan waiver. And if it is done in Punjab, very soon it will spread like an infectious disease in other states, taking the same shape as was during the 2008-09 mega loan waiver of UPA government, which finally cost the exchequer R52,517 crore. But, if a loan waiver was the solution to the problems of peasantry, there should not have been any farm distress after 2008-09. Problems of peasantry still persist simply because answers lie somewhere else. Take the case of Punjab. Punjab has been a front runner in agriculture since green revolution days. Its agri-GDP registered an average annual growth of about 10% during the first four years of green revolution (1966-67 to 1969-70). But during the period of current government, agri-GDP growth dropped to 1.5% per annum (2007-08-2014-15, latest available data), which is even lower than the national average of 3.2%, and way below the best performer Madhya Pradesh whose agri-growth stood at 10.9% per annum during the same period (see accompanying chart). Notwithstanding the fact that Punjab’s per hectare productivity is pretty high, the moot question is where did Punjab go wrong, and what sort of policies can get it back on high growth trajectory on sustainable basis? First, Punjab seems to have become a victim of its own success. Grain, primarily wheat and rice, occupies 80% of its gross cropped area (GCA), with almost highest productivity in India. This was great when India was suffering from food shortages. However, the situation today is completely different. After 2007-08, India emerged as a net exporter of cereals. Cereal stocks crossed 80 million tonnes (mt) on July 1, 2012, more than double the buffer stock norms. As a result of this ‘abundance’, the increases given in minimum support prices (MSP) of wheat and paddy were very meagre. This has brought down the profitability in these crops, and thus the income of Punjabi farmers. Just to give a flavour of the MSPs in India vis-a-vis some neighbouring countries, the MSP of wheat in China was $385/MT in 2014-15, in Pakistan $325/MT vis-à-vis India’s $225/MT. Similarly, for Indica rice China gave a support price of $440/MT as against $320/MT for India’s common rice. Punjab peasantry suffered due to ban on exports of wheat and rice (during 2007-11), stocking limits on private trade, besides heavy taxes and commissions imposed on purchase of wheat and rice from state, which go as high as 14.5%. In a country where 1% tax on purchase of jewellery creates uproar, it is ridiculous to have 14.5% tax on basic staples like wheat and rice. The net result of this misguided policy is that food processing industry, which can add value, feels extremely reluctant to enter Punjab and most of the roller-flour mills in Punjab buy their wheat from Uttar Pradesh! Second, although Punjab was the first to build a good marketing infrastructure for wheat and rice, it failed to create similar facilities for perishables like fruits and vegetables. As a result, prices of perishables remain volatile increasing the risk of farmers, who feel reluctant to shift to high value agriculture. Only 3.4% of Punjab’s GCA is under F&V compared to 8.3% at all India level. The state has to realise that there is a limit to augment farmers’ incomes through cereals unless lot of value addition is done, and the state has to shift towards high value horticulture and dairy to benefit farmers. Punjab has one of the highest milk productivity in the country, but share of milk production being processed by the organised sector is just 10%, compared to 20% at all India level and 53% in Gujarat. This clearly speaks of the need to ramp up milk processing facilities in the state. Third, the most critical problem of Punjab agriculture is its depleting water table primarily due to paddy cultivation during summer. The nexus of ground water irrigation-free power-assured procurement- are sending wrong signals to farmers. The water table declined by 70 centimeter per year from 2008 to 2012. Currently, 80% of blocks in Punjab are declared dark blocks where water is over exploited (see accompanying map). It looks as if the current generation is taking away the water rights of future generations. With one kg of rice consuming 3,000-5,000 liters of irrigation water, exporting common rice is not a very wise proposition for Punjab’s agriculture. This has to be rationalised and government should incentivise technologies like direct seeding of rice and drip irrigation in rice. Pilots in these areas show savings of 30-50% irrigation water. HomeMarket CommoditiesWhy Punjab should not provide free power; state can reward farmers via cash Why Punjab should not provide free power; state can reward farmers via cash There are reports that the Election Commission has written to the home minister reinforcing its demand to make electoral bribery a cognisable offence. By: The Financial Express | Published: February 27, 2017 3:41 AM 12 SHARES FacebookTwitterGoogle+LinkedInEmail Punjab Politics, PUnjab Elections, Election Commission, EC, farmer loans, BJP, UPA Government, AAP, green revolution, Punjab agriculture, incentivise technologies There are reports that the Election Commission has written to the home minister reinforcing its demand to make electoral bribery a cognisable offence. Who will form the next government in Punjab next month is currently sealed in the ballot boxes. In the mean time there are reports that the Election Commission has written to the home minister reinforcing its demand to make electoral bribery a cognisable
ONGC set to create energy giant with control of HPCL
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation(ONGC) will take control of Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) as part of the government’s plan to create an integrated public sector oil entity comparable with big global oil companies like Shell BP and Exxon, top government officials said. “It is a very big decision. A Cabinet note will soon be moved. The government of India will transfer its majority shareholding (of 51.11% in HPCL) to ONGC, which will then become the holding company of HPCL,” said one of the officials cited above. The move will stop short of a complete merger, which may take longer, but the purpose will be served with this step, said the people cited above. ET was the first to report on February 21 that the government plans to integrate either HPCL or Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) with ONGC in line with the February 1 budget announcement to “create an integrated public sector oil major which will be able to match the performance of international and domestic private sector oil and gas companies.” ET had also reported that the status of all other oil companies such as Oil India Ltd (OIL) and Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) would remain unchanged. ONGC’s exploration functions will be integrated with HPCL’s refining and distribution capabilities. HPCL, which owns and operates two major refineries in Mumbai and Visakhapatnam, has India’s largest lubricants unit and second largest pipeline network of 3,015 km apart from a vast marketing system. The thinking behind such vertical integration is that it will reduce risk-high crude oil prices will boost the exploration business and when they drop, the distribution segment will benefit. “The world over, the largest and most successful oil companies like Shell, BP and Exxon, are vertically integrated,” said an official, stressing that ONGC-HPCL’s earnings will become more stable and investors will benefit from this reduced volatility. Royce Freeman Womens Jersey
80% of Rakhine gas goes to China
A report called “Myanmar’s natural resources ownership, management, income sharing and impact” carried out by the Ethnic Nationalities Affairs Centre says the Shwe natural gas project off the Rakhine coast has a daily natural gas production capacity of 500 million cubic feet and 80 per cent of it will be exported to China for 30 years. Only about 100 million cubic feet would be sent to Kyaukphyu in impoverished Rakhine State, the report said. It also said Myanmar received just US$13.8 million a year from land rental for the gas pipeline that stretched nearly 800km from Rakhine State to China. An oil pipeline runs parallel from an island near the port of Kyaukphyu. The oil pipeline sent about 22 million tonnes a year to China from Rakhine State, which remains one of the poorest areas of Myanmar with a large proportion of its citizens living in wretched conditions. The gas pipeline was built jointly by six companies from China, Myanmar, South Korea and India. The gas pipeline is estimated to have cost about US$5 billion. Residents and non-governmental organisations have condemned the Shwe project for offering no benefits to Rakhine State. The state remains distracted and divided by ethnic disputes, which were sparked in 2012, coinciding with the exploitation of the state’s energy resources. Barry Church Womens Jersey
Giant Leap in Iran’s Gas Condensate Exports
The National Iranian Oil Company exported 24 million barrels of gas condensates in January to Asian and European buyers — the outbound volume being over and above the average figures seen during the past several months. Since the easing of international economic sanctions in January last year, Iran’s gas condensates exports have risen nearly four times, reaching a daily average of 550,000 barrels from just around 150,000 barrels per day in 2012 when trade and financial restrictions were in place, Shana reported. According to Ali Kardor, NIOC managing director, gas condensates output was around 300,000 bpd in 2013, but production capacity has since shot up by 50%, exceeding 600,000 barrels per day. Combined exports of crude oil and condensates have also climbed to 2.8 million bpd, said the official. Condensates are in the twilight zone between crude oil and natural gas. They possess characteristics of both oil and gas, and have values and market drivers both similar to, and distinctly separate from, oil and gas. Underscoring that the main buyers of Iranian gas condensates in Asia are its traditional oil customers, namely China, India, South Korea, Turkey, Taiwan and Japan, he noted, “BP received its first gas condensates cargo from NIOC last year under single-shipment contracts and negotiations are underway for NIOC to sign long-term contracts with Shell.” In related news, Iran had stored up 10 million barrels of condensates in China as part of efforts to expand its presence in the world’s second-largest energy market, but the entire inventory has been sold, the Oil Ministry said earlier in the week. Tehran turned to leasing oil storage tanks in China during the sanctions, making the country an export base for its petroleum products in the Far East as financial and trade restrictions had significantly curtailed Iranian oil trade and shipment. “With each barrel at $40, export of 50 million barrels of condensates generates $2 billion in revenues, Kardor was quoted as saying by Shana on Saturday. Condensate output is slated to reach 1 million barrels a day upon the launch of all phases of South Pars, the giant gas field shared by Iran and Qatar, the NIOC chief added. But Tehran has said it wants to reduce the outbound shipments of condensates and instead use the fossil fuel for manufacturing goods with higher value added. Condensate exports are set to decrease sharply upon the launch of several oil processing plants, including the Siraf and the Persian Gulf Star Refinery, the latter said to be the largest refinery project in the Middle East. Export of petroleum products has also risen to record levels in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year as 450,000 barrels of oil derivatives such as naphtha, diesel, bitumen and sulfur, were exported in large volumes to Southeast Asian clients from Mahshahr, Asalouyeh, Lavan and Bandar Abbas ports in southern Iran. Drew Stafford Authentic Jersey
Odisha govt withdraws tax sops to IOC’s Pradip refinery
In a big jolt to Indian Oil, the Odisha government has withdrawn tax incentives given to the Rs 345.55-billion Paradip refinery, making the company reconsider its plans to invest another Rs 520 billion in the state. Less than two months after serving the first show-cause notice, the Odisha government on February 22 wrote to its single-biggest investor saying it is withdrawing the promised 11-year deferment on payment of sales tax on Paradip refinery products sold in the state, sources said. The withdrawal will cost Rs 20 billion to Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) this year and will progressively increase every year as more petrol and diesel as also petrochemicals are sold within the state. The sources said that besides leading to levy of sales tax on 2 million tonnes of petrol and diesel sold in the state annually, the withdrawal is threatening viability of investments in downstream petrochemical plants as products from it will be consumed by an array of synthetic fibre and plastic industries and now tax will also be levied on them. When asked, IOC Director (Refineries) Sanjiv Singh said he would not like to discuss merits of the state government’s decision in the media. “IOC had invested about Rs 500 billion in Paradip refinery on the Odisha coast and in associated projects (like pipelines and port). We had plans for more investment, especially in downstream petrochemical projects and refinery expansion, considering the incentives given by the state. But in the present scenario, future investment options will require to be reassessed,” he said. IOC plans to expand the 15-mt-a-year Paradip refinery by 5 million tonnes as well as set up a polypropylene plant and a monoethylene glycol production facility at the site of the 1-year old refinery. He hoped Odisha will reconsider the decision and restore the incentives that were mutually agreed upon in 2004. Odisha had originally offered the tax incentives to IOC and its then partner Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) in December 1998 to invest in setting up a refinery in the state. These investments were withdrawn in February 2000, leading to the company shelving the project. It restored the incentives and signed an MoU with IOC on February 16, 2004, for providing a set of eight sops. The sources said the state government withdrew the tax incentives in “public interest”, citing 6-year delay in commissioning of the project that was larger in capacity than originally planned 9-mt plant. IOC, however, is quick to point out that the February 16, 2004, MoU clearly allowed change in design, capacity and configuration of the project. Sources said the Odisha government was informed about the change in capacity and the delay in construction caused by cyclone, land acquisition and law and order problems. Also, the state government had allowed the company to avail of construction period incentive, listed in the MoU, totalling Rs 5.50 billion. Singh said restoration of the tax incentives will send a positive signal to prospective investors in the state. “Paradip refinery has already added to the overall development of the area in and around Paradip,” he added. Justin Simmons Womens Jersey
India can be much larger producer, consumer of natural gas: US Congress report
India has the potential to become a much larger producer and consumer of natural gas by 2022, according to a first-of-its-kind Congressional report. “India’s natural gas plans have implications for a number of issues in which Congress has expressed an interest,” the bipartisan and independent Congressional Research Service (CRS) said in a report on India’s natural gas sector. The report noted that India could see greater demand for energy with its population expected to be around 1.4 billion people by 2022, making it the world’s most populous country. “India has the potential to become a much larger producer and consumer of natural gas by 2022,” it said. Issues of interest include prospects for US hydrocarbon exports, investments by US energy companies, Indian investments in US natural gas production, India’s ability to meet its international commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to combat climate change and India’s plans for integrating itself into the growing South Asian energy market, the 19-page report, released yesterday, said. The independent research wing of the US Congress brings out periodic reports on issues of interest to American lawmakers so that they can make informative decisions. However, the reports are not considered to be official documents of the Congress. The CRS said in the mid-2000s, members of both houses of Congress expressed interest to formalise closer energy ties between the United States and India, and a legislation was introduced but it was not enacted into law. However, the executive branch has implemented programmes to further improve the energy partnership between the two nations, it said. India’s current assessment of total reserves–resources that are economically and technically viable under existing market conditions–are estimated to represent less than one per cent of the global natural gas, the report said. As India attempts to shift away from coal and oil over the coming decades, natural gas production, especially from offshore resources, is seen as a way to increase domestic supply, it noted. Combined with improving infrastructure for imported LNG, India could become a bigger natural gas consumer in the future, the report said. CRS said in the past decade, India has incentivised foreign access to its upstream sector as a way to increase domestic production. Some of India’s energy companies are also investing more in US energy projects and have signed contracts to import US LNG, it said. Doug Middleton Jersey