Amidst controversies in the energy sector, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said governmental and regulatory oversight were essential for natural resources and assured transparency in the regulatory environment.
He added remunerative energy prices were essential for expanding supplies.
Speaking at the Asia Gas Partnership Summit, he said, "The government has initiated gas-pricing policy reforms to incentivise the production of natural gas. We are conscious that remunerative energy prices are needed to ensure expanded energy supplies….At the same time, oil and gas are natural resources and therefore, should be within the framework of governmental and regulatory oversight. The economic exploitation of these resources should lead to a win-win solution for both investors, as well as the people of India."
He said the government was committed to finding viable solutions for the concerns of the gas industry. "We are committed to ensuring the predictability and transparency of our policy and regulatory environment," he said.
Singh said India's gas demand had grown 14 per cent in the past five years and the country had attracted $14 billion in investment in the oil and gas sector under the New Exploration Licensing Policy. On the use of new sources of energy, he said a shale gas-licensing regime would be in place by 2013.
The prime minister also dedicated GAIL's 2,000-km Dahej-Vijaipur-Bawana-Nangal/ Bhatinda pipeline to the nation. He said the country had launched an ambitious pipeline development programme, under which GAIL would expand its network from 9,000 km to 14,500 km by 2012, while private operators would add another 5,000 km.
"The target is to have a country-wide gas grid of about 30,000 km by the end of the 12th Plan in 2017," he said.
