Rattled by India sharply cutting down purchase of its oil, Iran on Monday, 27 May, 2013 offered oil fields on lucrative terms and routing gas pipeline through sea to avoid Pakistan, provided New Delhi raised oil imports.Iran mounted a high-level delegation led by its Oil Minister Rostam Ghasemi to impress upon New Delhi to raise oil purchases, which were cut to 13.3 million tons in 2012-13 from 18 million tons in the previous year.This year imports are slated to fall further with Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL), which bought 3.9 million tons of Iranian oil in 2012-13, not importing any so far this fiscal."We had a very fruitful meeting," Ghasemi said describing India as "brother and great neighbour"."There is great relation and history between the two countries," he said after a 150-minute meeting with Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily.While Ghasemi refused to divulge details of discussion, Moily said there were "certain issues and difficulties" which need to be resolved, in apparent reference of western sanctions making import as well as investing in Iran difficult.Sources said Tehran was also willing to re-route the Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline through an under-sea route to totally avoid going through Pakistan. New Delhi has refused to join the pipeline over concerns of safety of the line and supplies in Pakistan.Alternatively, Iran offered to ship the gas in its liquid form (liquefied natural gas or LNG).Also, it offered a production sharing contract (PSC) to ONGC Videsh Ltd for the Farzad-B gas field, which is estimated to hold 13 Trillion cubic feet of recoverable reserves - three times the size of known reserves in Reliance Industries' KG-D6 block.(PTI)
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Shares in Reliance Industries rose more than 4 per cent in on Monday, 27 May 2013, after the conglomerate and its partners said they had made a significant gas discovery in the KG-D6 block off India's east coast.Reliance, along with partners Niko Resources Ltd and BP Plc, said late on Friday the discovery is expected to add to the gas resources in the block, without revealing potential reserves.At 3.04 p.m, shares were up 5.77 per cent at Rs 831.85.(Reuters)
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Welspun Energy is betting big investments in renewable energy at a time when two diagonally opposite factors rule the power sector — the fact of worsening power deficit in the country and generation issues as also the high costs and low margins from renewable energy business.Welspun Energy (WEL) will invest over Rs 11,000 crore in the next three years on solar and wind energy projects, Vineet Mittal, co-founder and managing of Welspun Energy told Businessworld. WEL, which has already commissioned 116 megawatt (Mw) of wind and solar power projects with an investment of over Rs 4000 crore, plans to commission 1750 Mw of wind and solar power projects by 2016.For many years, investments in solar energy has been an viewed as an unprofitable business proposition because of the high raw material costs and big initial investment. But Mittal says the scene has changed. If the costs for setting up a solar project in India was nearly Rs 15-17 crore per MW three years ago, it has come down to nearly Rs 7-7.5 crore per MW. This was made possible mainly due to the crash of silicon prices and solar wafers, the most important part of a solar power generating equipment. Welspun Energy has been making profits from the first year itself, said the executive.India plans to double its renewable energy capacity from 25000 MW in 2012 to 55000 MW by the year 2017. As part of this, India is implementing the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission to develop 22,000 MW of solar capacity by 2022 covering both solar photovoltaic and solar thermal.WEL has about 150 MW of solar projects are at various stages of completion and will take off by the end of this year. Of this, solar projects will include 66 MW in Tamil Nadu, 32 MW in Punjab and another 23 Mw in various states. Plans are to have a mix of about 1000 MW of wind energy and 750 MW of solar power projects.Welspun Energy is promoted by Balkrishna Goenka, promoter of the $3.5 billion pipe-to-home textiles manufacturer Welspun Group and Vineet Mittal, a serial entrepreneur.In March, Welspun had achieved financial closure for a 130 MW solar project, India’s largest to date, coming up in Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh. This project is slated for commissioning by May 2014. Besides, the company had commissioned a 50 MW solar power project in Rajasthan, so far the largest in India.Welspun has already signed Memorandum of Undertsnding (MoU)s with the Andhra Pradesh Government to set up 500 MW of wind power and 100 MW of solar. Similar MoUs were also signed with the States of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka and Chattisgarh. Welspun Energy funds the project through a 75:25 debt-equity ratio and plans to fully fund the equity portion with internal funds. After achieving big scale of operations, the company will look to rope in private equity investments or go for an initial public offer, said Vineet Mittal.pb(dot)jayakumar(at)abp(dot)inpbjayan(at)gmail(dot)com(at)pbjayakumar
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Having established itself as a major fuel retailer in Mauritius, India's leading public sector oil company IOC is planning fresh investments to expand its capacity in the island nation.Besides, it is also looking to expand into other African markets by making Mauritius as its base for the region, IndianOil Mauritius Ltd (IOML) Managing Director Ranjan Kumar Mohapatra said here.IOML is a wholly owned subsidiary of Indian Oil Corp Ltd (IOC), a leading PSU and the largest oil company in India. It entered Mauritius in 2002 and began operations in 2004 after setting up terminals and other facilities."Yes, we are trying to make Mauritius a base to enter Africa. In the first phase, we would like to take our lubricant product Servo to Africa."Currently we are not exporting anything, but we being a Free Port entity in Mauritius would have significant benefits once we start exporting to Africa," Mohapatra told PTI in an interview here.A Free Port entity in Mauritius gets various tax breaks for operating from the country's ports for exports to Africa."Mauritius has been always considered as a gateway to Africa and we must capitalise on this. Unlike many African countries, the systems are very well laid out here with a level playing fields for everyone and having a base in Mauritius would help in doing business in Africa," he said.Asked about investment plans in Mauritius itself, Mohapatra said IOML's turnover rose to MUR 7.2 billion in the last fiscal and the company plans to invest MUR 175 million (over Rs 31 crore) in the current fiscal year 2013-14.One Mauritian Rupee (MUR) equals to about Rs 1.78."We will be building tanks for increasing our aviation fuel facility. Besides, we would also like to expand our filling station network both in terms of numbers as well as in terms of facilities. In addition, there would be some other small investments there this fiscal," he said."Hopefully, we would be able to increase our market share following these investments," he said.IOML has 18 filling stations in Mauritius and is also a major supplier of aviation fuel with almost 49 per cent market share in this segment. Across all petroleum products, it has an overall market share of 23.4 per cent, Mohapatra said."In aviation fuel segment, there are further growth opportunities. Although our market share is already close to 50 per cent, we have been constrained to some extent due to lack of sufficient tankage facility and the investment in building the new tank would address that issue," he said.IOML chief said the company started making profits from the very first year of operations here and it has been a debt free company for the fourth year now."For the last fiscal, we recorded profit before tax of MUR 148 million and profit after tax of 122.3 million, as against 117.1 million last year," he said.(PTI)
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Britain has stepped up efforts to let India join an influential global body controlling nuclear exports, a move that would boost New Delhi's standing as an atomic power but which has faced resistance from China and other countries.The diplomatic tussle centres on whether emerging power India should be allowed into a key forum deciding rules for civilian nuclear trade, even though it has refused to join an international pact under which it would have to give up its nuclear weapons.London, Washington, Paris and others argue nuclear-armed India should join the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) - established in 1975 to ensure that civilian nuclear exports are not diverted for military purposes.Britain has pressed its case in a paper prepared ahead of the NSG's annual meeting this week, arguing India qualifies because of the size of its civilian atomic industry and its commitment to stopping the spread of military material.Western powers have taken a keen interest in the nuclear emergence of India - particularly its ambition to expand its capacity in the next 20 years by adding nearly 30 reactors, making it an attractive prospect for technology exporters.But other NSG states have voiced doubt about accepting a member like India that built up a nuclear arsenal outside a global pact set up more than four decades ago to prevent countries from acquiring nuclear arms.If India joined the NSG, it would be the only member of the suppliers group that has not signed up to the 1970 nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT).Beijing's reservations are believed to be influenced by its ties to its ally Pakistan, India's rival, which has also tested atomic bombs and is also outside the NPT, analysts say.India - Asia's third-largest economy - would need the support of all 48 NSG members to join the secretive cartel that regulates nuclear trade and has a key role in countering nuclear threats and proliferation.But the body has remained split. "There is no unanimity on this issue," a senior official from one NSG state said.The United States sealed a landmark civilian nuclear supply deal with India in 2008 that China and others found questionable because Delhi is outside the NPT.Nuclear RivalriesIt ended India's atomic isolation following its 1974 nuclear test and could mean billions of dollars in business for U.S. firms. Britain is also exploring a nuclear cooperation deal with India.The British document, obtained by Reuters on Friday, stated: "The UK strongly supports India's accession to the NSG at the earliest appropriate moment.""The UK believes that the NSG is best served by the inclusion and membership of India, with an important civil nuclear industry which continues to uphold the international non-proliferation architecture," the paper added.It was not immediately clear how the British paper was received. A statement issued after the closed-door meeting in Prague said only the NSG's "relationship with India" was discussed. Officials had said they did not expect any decision already now.At an informal meeting on the issue in Vienna in March, diplomats said China stressed the need for equal treatment in South Asia, an apparent reference to Pakistan.Research assistant Daniel Painter of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) think-tank said that by joining the NSG India would have a voice in determining the group's new export guidelines.But, he said, it would also threaten the NSG's credibility."It would further solidify the perception of India as an accepted non-NPT nuclear weapon state," he wrote in an analysis.India and Pakistan - which have fought three wars - have both refused to sign the 189-nation NPT, which would oblige them to scrap nuclear weapons.Pakistan - which has been trying to move closer to Asian powerhouse China as Islamabad's ties with Washington have suffered - has warned against allowing its rival into the NSG. (Reuters)
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Reliance Industries (RIL) on Friday, 24 May announced a huge natural gas discovery, possibly the biggest find ever, in the flagging eastern offshore KG-D6 block that will be key to arresting falling output. Canadian oil and natural gas producer Niko Resources Ltd, which partners India's Reliance Industries Ltd and BP Plc, said the discovery is expected to add to the gas resources in the block, without revealing potential reserves. This sent Nico shares up 26 per cent. "It is a significant discovery in the sense that out of a half-inch choke you have got 2,000 barrels a day and over 30 million cubic feet a day of gas flowing ...," Niko Chief Executive Edward Sampson told Reuters. The discovery, named D-55, comes at a time when the companies had been grappling with declining output at the block."We shall embark on the appraisal programme in the next few months in order to evaluate the options for developing this discovery," PMS Prasad, executive director at Reliance Industries, said in a statement. Reliance Industries is the operator of the block with a 60 per cent stake. BP holds 30 per cent and Niko the rest.RIL and its partner BP plc of UK encountered 155 metres of gas pay zone in the first exploration well drilled on the block in more than five years. The well was drilled two kilometres below the existing producing D1&D3 fields. "The KGD6-MJ1 well was drilled in a water depth of 1,024 metres - and to a total depth of 4,509 metres (4.5 kilometres below seabed)," RIL-BP said in a statement. The well was drilled to explore the prospectivity of a Mesozoic Synrift Clastic reservoir lying over 2,000 metres below the already producing reservoirs in the Dhirubhai-1 and 3 (D1&D3) gas fields."Formation evaluation indicates a gross gas and condensate column in the well of about 155 metres in the Mesozoic reservoirs," the statement said adding the well flowed 30.6 million standard cubic feet per day of gas during testing.Though RIL-BP did not put any reserves to the discovery, the find may possibly be the largest single discovery in the country. The discovery, which was notified to the regulatory authorities, has been named D-55.Sources said the resource found may be significantly more than a pre-drill best case gross prospective resource of 819 billion cubic feet of gas and 56 million barrels of liquids for the well.RIL-BP had drilled MJ-1 well in early March after the government permitted companies to drill exploration wells in areas where exploration period had long expired. Dhirubhai-1 and 3 (D1&D3) gas fields, the largest among the 18 gas finds on KG-D6 block, have proved to be more difficult to produce than previously predicted. D1&D3 reservoir has seen sharper-than-expected drop in pressure and water and sand ingress in production wells, leading to a drop in output.Niko shares rose to a high of C$7.54 in early morning trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Friday. The stock has lost more than 40 per cent this year to Thursday close. Shares in Reliance Industries closed flat at Rs 786.45.(Agencies)
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Strongly refuting allegations of favouring Reliance Industries, Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily today said the proposed revision in natural gas price will apply to all companies including state-owned ONGC.Moily thrashed CPI MP Gurudas Dasgupta's allegations of favouring RIL as "totally false and baseless" and said the proposed increase in natural gas price was being done "strictly in line with the formula proposed by Prime Minister appointed panel headed by his economic adviser C Rangarajan.""It is totally false and baseless. The new pricing, if approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), will apply to all gas produced in the country. Two-thirds of the gas produced in the country is by public sector companies (like ONGC) and the new pricing will apply equally to them and they stand to benefit more out of it," he said.In a point-by-point rebuttal to allegations made by Dasgupta at a press conference on , Moily said the CPI leader "was wrong in saying that the petroleum ministry has deviated from the recommendations of Rangarajan Committee."The allegations of a gigantic scam in making "are not only devoid of merits but also are malicious and based on distorted facts".The price revision besides being contractual requirement, was needed to spur investment in oil and gas exploration which has stagnated over past few years, he said.Gas finds in deep-sea are not economically viable to develop at current rate of $4.2 per million British thermal unit."Mr Dasgupta talks of fertiliser subsidy rising due to gas price increase but what he does not realise is that if domestic production does not increase, we will have to import gas and imported gas (LNG) costs triple the domestic gas price," Moily said.The government stands to gain from rise in domestic gas price by way of increased royalty, profit petroleum as well as taxes which can be used to make up for increased subsidy.Moily was attending an oil and gas conference in Bangkok when Dasgupta made the allegations at a press conference yesterday at New Delhi.(PTI)
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India has made "tremendous progress" in reducing oil imports from Iran, a senior US government official said on 24 May' 2013, in a sign the South Asian nation is likely to get a third waiver from sanctions imposed by Washington against Tehran's nuclear programme. "All of the data is certainly pointing in a positive direction," US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman told reporters when asked about a possible waiver to India. US and European Union sanctions are aimed at choking the flow of oil money into Iran and forcing Tehran to curb its controversial nuclear programme. As a result, Iran's crude exports were halved in 2012, costing it as much as $5 billion a month. All of Iran's major Asian clients - China, India, Japan and South Korea - have cut import volumes to secure waivers that allow them to continue the shipments without the risk of losing access to the US financial system.(Reuters)
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