Airports Authority of India sets up cargo subsidiary
Aviation minister P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, launched Airports Authority of India Cargo Logistics & Allied Services Company Limited on Tuesday. The AAICLAs is an independent cargo subsidiary company by corporatization of AAI’s Cargo Department. Neera Rawat has been appointed as the MD of the subsidiary and BK Mehrotra would be Chief Executive Officer of AAICLAS. “The vision of the Company is to become the foremost integrated Logistics Net Work operator in India with primary focus on Air Cargo handling and allied services. This new subsidiary will be allowed to develop its own distinct culture, organization structure and business model while at the same time draw upon the strength of its large parent origination, Airports Authority of India,” AAI said. “All the activities currently being carried out by the Cargo Department of AAI will be merged into the new Company and the Department will no longer be functioning with AAI. The Company will be shortly initiating comprehensive discussion with all the stakeholders to ensure smooth transition of all Cargo activities to the new Company,” it said. Christian Kirksey Authentic Jersey
I had no say in aviation foray: Mistry
Tata Sons tied up with AirAsia in February 2013 to start an airline and six months later joined hands with Singapore Airlines. Both the decisions occurred within a year of Cyrus Mistry taking over as group chairman, but now as Mistry’s letter to Tata Sons’ board members indicates he had little role in them. Mistry’s letter also highlights Rs 22 crore fraud in AirAsia India adding that a first information report was filed only on the insistence of an independent director. AirAsia did not immediately respond to a query seeking a comment. In his letter, Mistry points out negotiations with both AirAsia and Singapore Airlines (JV partners in AirAsia India and Vistara) were carried out by Ratan Tata and that he had been presented with a fait accompli. Tata Sons is majority shareholder in both the airlines. “The passion for the airlines sector has led Mr Tata to continue his involvement with the strategy of the two airlines. It is on his advice that Tata Sons board has increased the capital infusion in the sector at multiple levels of the initial commitment,” Mistry said. Ratan Tata’s interest and involvement in the airline business was clearly evident as in 2013, Tata led AirAsia and Singapore Airlines bosses to meetings with the then Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh seeking approvals. Again in early February he also spoke out against the controversial ‘5/20’ rule, which scuttled the overseas expansion plans of two airlines. In July 2013, Ratan Tata was appointed as an advisor to the AirAsia India board.
Black & Veatch Achieves World’s First LNG Production on a Floating Facility
Mumbai based Energy professionals of Black & Veatch India played a pivotal role in project design. Its proprietary PRICO® Single Mixed Refrigerant Technology used in more than 30 LNG projects worldwide becomes the World’s First Proven Floating LNG (FLNG) Technology. Black & Veatch, a global EPC leader in delivering ‘concept to commissioning’ project solutions in the segments of power, oil & gas, water and telecom, has today announced that its patented PRICO® Single Mixed Refrigerant (SMR) technology has become the world’s first proven FLNG technology to achieve production on a floating facility after successfully completing performance testing of the liquefaction unit in Nantong, China. This is of immense significance for the company as, for the first time in history; LNG has been produced on board a floating facility. Project Details Black & Veatch’s patented PRICO® technology was used in the Caribbean FLNG project for the world’s first Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) unit by global oil and gas shipper Exmar to meet the rising demand for alternative, clean fuel for Pacific Rubiales Energy. The single train liquefaction unit has a production capacity of 72 million cubic feet a day of LNG (or about 500,000 ton per annum) on board the non-propelled barge. The LNG temporarily stored in on board tanks; can be subsequently offloaded to LNG carriers. Black & Veatch delivered engineering and procurement for the top side liquefaction unit, along with construction support, onsite commissioning and start-up services. From an Indian perspective, energy professionals in Black & Veatch’s Mumbai office in Vikhroli contributed to the project design. Test Results With the average liquefaction process load exceeding 100 percent during the 72-hour performance test, the flawless performance of the FLNG ensured all design requirements and production capacities were achieved for the unit’s operational effectiveness. In addition to the design and production capacity of the liquefaction unit, the 72-hour performance test also confirmed the other systems designed by Black & Veatch, including gas treating, boil-off gas handling, and supporting utilities, ensured that the entire FLNG production process worked seamlessly. “The results from the in-depth performance testing further confirms the leadership in FLNG project delivery that we are bringing to the industry through our floating LNG solutions program,” said Bob Germinder, Senior Vice President, Oil & Gas business, Black & Veatch. “Our PRICO® technology is being applied in more than 30 LNG operations worldwide, and with the completion of this performance testing, the first of five Black & Veatch designed FLNG trains are now proven in the marketplace, demonstrating how we are helping to meet the growing demand for energy”, he added. “This performance test completion is a major milestone in our company’s floating LNG liquefaction program to help meet the growing demand for energy. It demonstrates our leadership in FLNG solutions, allowing owners of stranded gas reserves to monetize their reserves on a very fast track basis under a build, own, operate basis with Exmar,” said Nicolas Saverys, Chief Executive Officer, Exmar. Marlon Mack Jersey
With bid submission deadline for discovered small fields extended, first round under HELP may be delayed
India’s first bid round to implement its new hydrocarbon exploration policy may get delayed with the government extending the deadline for bid submission for 67 discovered small fields. Earlier, the last date for submitting bids for the discovered small fields was 31 October which was later extended to 21 November. This comes in the backdrop of India’s stagnant hydrocarbon production. With the nine bid rounds under the New Exploration Licensing Policy unable to attract the desired level of investments, the National Democratic Alliance government approved marketing freedom for crude oil and natural gas under new Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) in March this year. The first HELP round was expected next year. “Because of the extension of dates, it will be difficult to wrap the (discovered small fields) bids within this year. The last date now for submitting the bids is 21 November after which it shall be difficult to complete everything within the year,” said a senior petroleum ministry official requesting anonymity. These fields were earlier held by state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) Ltd and Oil India Ltd. Discovered small fields bidding was launched in New Delhi on 25 May 2016. Under this round, India is offering 46 contract areas with 67 oil and gas fields, estimated to hold over 625 million barrels of oil and oil equivalent gas in-place, spread over 1,500 sq. km. Another government official who also did not want to be named confirmed the development and said, “After postponing the deadline, the last date for completion shall be automatically extended as well.” The first bid round under HELP will mark the culmination of the government’s bet for a revenue-sharing model from the controversial cost-recovery model which involves cost recovery by firms before the government receives its share of the revenue. The cost recovery model was also criticised by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India due to it being inadequate to incentivise private contractors to reduce capital expenditure. The new policy also allows for exploration for all types of hydrocarbon resources, including coal-bed methane or gas hydrates under a single licence. Moreover, an open acreage approach would finally allow firms to choose the areas of their liking for exploration. Queries emailed to the spokesperson of petroleum and natural gas ministry on 25 October remained unanswered. India has 26 sedimentary basins covering an area of 3.14 million sq. km, out of which seven basins have established commercial productions in progress. India has a total reserve of 763.476 million tonne of crude oil and 1,488.73 billion cu. metre of natural gas. Experts concur with the expected delay. “As per my assessment it will be difficult to launch HELP early next year because the top priority of the government would be to ensure quick evaluation of the offers of all the contacts and signing the contracts (under DSF). Only after this is taken care of shall the government get into HELP,” said R.S. Sharma, former chairman and managing director, ONGC. As part of India’s efforts towards energy security, the ministry of petroleum and natural gas is strengthening its exploration division and has introduced an additional position of a joint secretary in the exploration division. Derek MacKenzie Authentic Jersey
Nigeria’s oil-for-cash deal with India
The Federal Government of Nigeria is currently negotiating a $15 billion oil-for-cash deal with India, which will spin many years. Perhaps, it will last longer than President Muhammadu Buhari – even if he serves two terms. That is a long-term commitment of Nigeria’s crude oil, while the proceeds might be spent, perhaps, within a couple of years. To be fair to the current administration, this is not the first time such a long-term arrangement is being made by a government which had suddenly run out of sufficient dollars to keep exchange rates, interest rates and inflation within tolerable limits. The Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) project would not have been possible if the Babangida regime had not made the same sort of long-term commitment of our gas in exchange for ready cash. Today, the nation is better for it. So, on no account must we discard this idea just because it is a variation on the former approach which brought badly needed dollars in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Certainly, it has its merits. But, it also poses dangers for the future. To start with, Babangida acted then as a military President and only made a perfunctory show of “consulting broadly” with Nigerians when, invariably, the decision had already been made. Furthermore, the “Age of Gas” was just starting. It was the discovery that Nigeria had more gas reserves than oil that changed the classification from an oil-producing nation to one which is now known as “gas associated with oil”. The global gas market was characterised by scarcity and Nigeria had lots of it unused. It was not so difficult to find takers in the joint venture. We negotiated from position of strength. Today, even the gas market is now experiencing some glut. Right now, there is no oil scarcity; all the producers are experiencing production cutb-acks. It is much more difficult to drive a good bargain when you are negotiating on your knees. We, therefore, ask the Federal Government to fully disclose all the details of this deal; and for the National Assembly to interrogate them critically. The Assembly must approve it before the deal is sealed. The consequences of getting it wrong are too frightening to contemplate. Granted, what the Buhari administration seeks to do amounts to mortgaging the future. But, if the proceeds are directed towards remedying infrastructural deficits and promoting education and agriculture, it will be beneficial in the long-term. But, if it is applied to “give-away” programmes, the future would have been mortgaged for nothing. We also want to know if the volumes sold to India under this arrangement will form part of our OPEC quota. If so, succeeding governments would be in deep trouble if low crude oil prices persist.
Nature of LNG business is changing
Former Cheniere Energy boss Charif Souki says the answer to the glut of natural gas is even lower prices, which he says his new exporter Tellurian Investments will supply. Natural gas prices hit a more than one-month low this week due to warm weather in the U.S., as well as a persistent global oversupply. But Souki told CNBC that low prices were key to rebalancing the market. The founder and former chief executive of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) pioneer Cheniere Energy, Souki co-founded Tellurian Investments this year with Martin Houston, the former chief operating officer of BG Group. Souki said Tellurian would look to undercut competitors’ prices by about 17 percent when it started shipping in six years’ time – a price reduction Souki told CNBC could be achieved by engaging producers early in the process and through better engineering. Tellerian’s LNG terminal in Louisiana is expected to be operational by 2022, by which time Souki said he expected supply-side dynamics to have tightened up as the abundant current supply reduced prices, spurring demand. The founder and former chief executive of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) pioneer Cheniere Energy, Souki co-founded Tellurian Investments this year with Martin Houston, the former chief operating officer of BG Group. Souki said Tellurian would look to undercut competitors’ prices by about 17 percent when it started shipping in six years’ time – a price reduction Souki told CNBC could be achieved by engaging producers early in the process and through better engineering. Tellerian’s LNG terminal in Louisiana is expected to be operational by 2022, by which time Souki said he expected supply-side dynamics to have tightened up as the abundant current supply reduced prices, spurring demand. Record natural gas volumes being exported by Russia to Europe were contributing to the current glut, while new markets were coming on board on a “weekly basis,” Souki said. Emerging producers included India, Abu Dhabi and Vietnam, he said. The broad array of suppliers meant that natural gas should be priced on a standalone basis, rather than as it is currently, through a reference to oil or petroleum prices, the LNG veteran said. “You don’t have any justification to indexation to anything else anymore,” he said, adding, “On that basis, it makes sense to be the low cost producer.” As for how the next U.S. president would influence energy policy in the world’s biggest economy, Souki said he expected continuity from a Hillary Clinton administration. “She understands the balance between environment concerns and the need for clean energy and at the same time the very, very important role that natural gas plays on the global basis and the important role that the U.S. can play now that it has become natural gas rich and has the ability to export to other countries,” he said. Souki did not comment on what he expected from a Donald Trumpadministration, as he noted that he did not expect the Republican candidate to win. “If he does, I might have to reconsider my nationality,” said the outspoken Egyptian-American. Eddie Jackson Authentic Jersey
Cairn India to invest $100 million in Rajasthan gas fields
Vedanta group company Cairn India plans to invest $100 million with focus on Rajasthan gas fields. The company is targeting to increase gas production to 40-45 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) by 2017 and to 100 mmscfd by 2018/19. The capital investment is estimated for FY17 with 80 per cent focus for development of Raageshwari Deep Gas(RDG) project and completion activities of Mangala Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), a company spokesperson said. “The project is being developed in a phased manner to realise capital efficiency while maintaining production growth and is progressing on track. As part of Phase-1, eight out of the 15 wells have been brought online and will start adding to the production as per plan. Rest of the wells are also planned to be brought online by December 2016,” the spokesperson said. Contract for low-cost augmentation of the existing facility will be awarded shortly. Tendering for enhancement of existing pipeline capacity is in advance stage and contract is expected to be awarded during Q3 FY17, he said. Completion of Phase-1 is expected to increase the gas production to 40-45 mmscfd by end of H1 CY17. For Phase-2, tendering activity for new gas processing terminal and drilling rig is ongoing according to plan. Completion of Phase-2 will increase the gas production upwards of 100 mmscfd and condensate production to about 5,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Since early 2013, the Rajasthan joint-venture (JV) is selling Raageshwari gas and delivering into GSPL’s Gujarat Grid and fertiliser units. GSPL, along with its JV partners, is laying a pipeline up to Barmer for offtaking higher volumes of natural gas through its Mehsana Bhatinda pipeline. Gas production from Rageshwari increased from 28 mmscfd in Q1 FY17 to 33 mmscfd in Q2 FY17, amounting to three bcf (billion cubic feet), helped by initial well productivity post conclusion of the hydro-frac campaign. Total gas sales were 1.6 bcf, at an average rate of 17.2 mmscfd. In-line with the focus on improving productivity and enhancing recovery through technology adoption, the expected ultimate gas recovery has increased by 26 per cent compared to the initial estimates. “While the JV wishes to ramp-up gas sales from RGD from current volutes, it is in discussion with the government and looks forward to a higher allocation,” the company said. Texas Rangers Authentic Jersey
Final report on new environmental norms for construction sector soon
Facing criticism for proposing changes in environmental norms for the construction sector, which critics have alleged will benefit the construction industry at the cost of environmental checks, the Union environment ministry has formed a committee to consider the objections before finalising the changes. The four-member committee formed on 27 September has been given two months’ time to give its report. The committee has had four meetings so far and would soon submit its final report. Earlier this year, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) published a draft notification (29 April 2016) proposing integrating environmental conditions with building permissions granted by local authorities under state-specific land laws. The draft meant that after such integration, construction projects would not require compulsory clearances under the Environment Protection Act. As per the current norms, building and construction projects with built-up area over 20,000 sq. metres and above require green clearances. However, in the proposed system, three categories of buildings—5,000-20,000 sq. metres, 20,000-50,000 sq. metres and 50,000-150,000 sq. metres—are being created where standard conditions are slightly stricter for larger buildings than smaller ones. Subsequently, the proposal came under heavy criticism from environmentalists who alleged that it will result in bypassing of environmental checks like environment impact assessment of construction projects may be given a miss. “The committee formed on 27 September is a result of criticism that the ministry faced in the past few months only,” said a senior official of the MoEFCC, who did not wish to be identified. The committee includes S.K. Srivastava, additional director in MoEFCC, Chandra Bhushan of NGO Centre for Science and Environment, Mili Majumdar of Green Business Certification Institute Pvt. Ltd and Tanmay Tathagat, director at consulting firm Environmental Design Solution. The 27 September order states that the 29 April draft notification “needs to be finalised after analysing and incorporating the comments received from the public, if need be after offering the opportunity of hearing”. “The committee would consider the objections /suggestions of stakeholders,” said the 27 September MoEFCC order, which was reviewed by Mint. A member of the four-member committee, who did not wish to be identified, said they are not aware whether the order regarding the committee’s formation was made public or not. “We have analysed the comments and suggestions that MoEFCC had received. Our report is nearly finalised and we would submit it to the ministry soon,” the member said. Another committee member, who also did not wish to be identified, said, “The 29 April draft notification had received hundreds of comments and suggestions. There were several loopholes in that notification. We have had four meetings of the committee and have analysed all the comments. The committee would now soon give its final report.” The proposed changes by MoEFCC is significant as India is set to witness rapid urbanisation up to 2030 and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has pledged housing for all by 2022. Gabe Holmes Womens Jersey
Haryana to close five toll points
The Haryana Government has decided to close five toll points and install three new toll points in the State. The Haryana Cabinet on Wednesday met under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar in Chandigarh to approve the proposal of the Public Works (Building and Roads) Department to close five toll points after the expiry of their present agreements and install three new one near inter-State borders. The five toll points which are to be closed include the Gurugram-Pataudi road toll point. Its toll agreement would close on December 12, 2017. Similarly, the Gurugram-Farrukh Nagar-Jhajjar road toll point would also be closed after completion of its agreement on August 27, 2017. The third toll point is on Neval Gheer Garhi Birbal road. Its date of completion is November 30, 2016. The other two toll points to be closed are Pehowa-Ladwa-Saharanpur Haridwar road, Section 3rd gate of Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra to Pehowa and that of Karnal Rambha Indri Ladwa road. The agreements for both points would close later this year. The three new toll points which would be installed after completion of repair work are on Palwal-Jewar-Aligarh road, Ateli to Kheri road in Mahendragarh district and Narnaul-Koriawas-Rambass road in Mahendragarh district. PTI adds Direct-To-Home (DTH) services and cable service providers will now come under tax net with the Haryana Cabinet giving approval in this regard on Wednesday. The State Cabinet on Wednesday approved the amendments to the provisions of the Punjab Entertainment Duty Act, 1955, to make provision for implementation of electronic governance under the Act and the Rules framed thereunder, said an official spokesman. The scope of definition of ‘entertainment’ has been expanded to include entertainments provided by the Direct-to-Home (DTH) services and cable service providers. After this amendment, the State Government will be able to levy tax on cable service providers and on DTH services, he said. The amendments approved by the Cabinet will be placed before the State Legislature for approval, he said. Besides, the Haryana Cabinet also approved amendments to the provisions of the Haryana Tax on Luxuries Rules, 2008, in order to facilitate the proprietors registered under the Haryana Tax on Luxuries Act, 2007, to implement electronic governance in the fields of registration amendment, cancellation of registration certificate, returns and payment of tax, said the spokesman. The Council of Ministers also approved rationalisation of entertainment duty. Rate of duty on cinematograph exhibitions will remain at 30 per cent and rate of duty on all other entertainments including amusement parks, fun parks, cultural activities etc. has been fixed at 15 per cent, he said. Adrian Gonzalez Jersey
Power transmission sector shoots in the dark with no set targets
While the central government has clear targets for renewable energy and power distribution sector, the power transmission sector seems to have been left out. Since the start of the financial year, eight projects of Rs 9,635 crore have been announced to be offered through tariff-based competitive bidding (TBCB). However, these projects are at different levels of selection and yet to be awarded. The government plans to offer projects totalling Rs 4,500 crore, but there is no timeline yet. This comes at a time when the Centre has said Rs 50,000 crore worth of transmission projects will be awarded by the end of the financial year. According to officials, the amount reflects not the number of projects but the opportunity for the sector. Last year, projects worth Rs 18,000 crore were tendered out. “There is no particular benchmark or cost structure that is being followed to award transmission projects. When we say Rs 50,000 crore, it includes inter- and intra-state corridors, projects that state-owned Power Grid Corporation would build and also the spillover from last year,” said a senior power ministry official. He said the count for the projects would keep increasing as and when the screening committee clears the projects. The inter-departmental screening committee of the power ministry clears power transmission projects, which then move to the empowered committee that decides whether it would be awarded through TBCB or nominated to Power Grid. Power transmission sector was opened up to the private sector in 2010. The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission had, in 2011, mandated that power transmission projects should be awarded through TBCB like the case with generation projects. Power Grid was the only company operating in this space till then. The recently amended National Tariff Policy, 2016, mandates that apart from projects of strategic importance that would be nominated to state-owned Power Grid, all should be awarded through TBCB. However, the perimeter of nomination is not defined. Executives said the private sector is in a fix over the government projections. “The Centre should encourage states to adopt bidding route to reduce cost, which would help in achieving UDAY (Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana) targets. In the recent past, TBCB projects have showcased that tariff and costs of competitively bid projects have been at least 30 per cent less than projects awarded under the cost-plus mechanism. State utilities can then deploy their capital to improve operational efficiencies,” said a senior power sector expert. Tarang, the power ministry’s monitoring portal for power transmission projects, cites 27 inter-state and 11 intra-state projects under the upcoming category. The cost is not mentioned. Intra-state projects fall in the regulatory ambit of the state governments. Most of the intra-state projects are nominated to Power Grid. Of the 27 inter-state projects, the Empowered Committee is yet to decide on the mode of awarding the latest 10 projects. This year, the focus is on inter-regional corridors and connectivity for mega solar projects coming up in several states. Some of the projects are North Eastern Region Strengthening Scheme, Eastern Region Strengthening Scheme, and transmission system for solar parks in Rajasthan, Gujarat and Karnataka, among others, which would be awarded under the bidding route. Sylvester Williams Authentic Jersey