Natural gas will no longer be allocated: Govt to private power producers

No fresh allocation of gas to be made

Leaving gas-based power plants stranded, the government has conveyed to private power producers that natural gas would no longer be allocated but they will have to bid for buying the fuel. This is a policy reversal from the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime when gas-based power generation along with fertiliser, liquefied petroleum gas production, and city gas distribution were identified as priority sectors for allocation of gas.

The decision to let private power plants bid for gas rather than get an allocation was conveyed at a meeting of power producers and the government earlier this month. Around 7.5 gigawatt (Gw)