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Global kerosene and LPG prices divergent to those of diesel, petrol and ATF

In the first price revision after the government capped the number of subsidised cylinders for consumers, domestic liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has become nearly 17 per cent dearer, thanks to firm international prices. From October 1, the consumer price of every non-subsidised domestic LPG cylinder has risen to Rs 883 from Rs 756 last month.

The Supreme Court has issued notice to Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) while admitting an appeal of GAIL (India) Limited challenging the award of Rs 7,000-crore Mallavaram-Bhilwara-Vijaipur gas pipeline project to a consortium led by state-run Gujarat State Petronet Limited (GSPL). A bench headed by Justice TS Thakur on Monday, however, declined to grant stay on the work of the over 1,500 km long pipeline project.

The expansion project to fire up BPCL’s Kochi refinery capacity to 15.5 million tonnes a year

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd’s integrated refinery expansion project in Kochi is expected to get environmental clearance anytime now with Tuesday’s meeting of the Expert Appraisal Committee (Industry) for Environmental Impact Assessment in New Delhi ending on a positive note. Union Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs K.V. Thomas told The Hindu on the telephone that the expert committee, which considered the project, was positive on its assessment though a formal announcement had not been made on the project getting the green signal.

State-run oil marketer Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), which is setting up its first propylene unit in Kochi, said it was ready to offer 51 per cent stake in the Rs 6,000-crore project to its Korean joint venture partner LG Chemicals.

‘We have already inked an MoU (memorandum of understanding) with LG Chemicals for this project. They are looking at 51 per cent stake in the JV (joint venture) and we are open to that. The JV company will be in place by December or January and the plant will be commissioned by the end of financial year 2017,” BPCL Finance Director S Varadarajan said.

Mumbai Government-run Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) is eyeing stakes in overseas oil blocks, primarily in Africa and Kazakhstan, as it looks to beef up its portfolio of producing and disco

Securing timely payment from states against sale of subsidised cylinders beyond six would be a challenge

Oil marketing companies (OMCs) are wary of the populist step of states to increase the number of subsidised cylinders. Securing timely payment from states against sale of subsidised cylinders beyond six would be a challenge, the companies said. According to last week’s decision, a consumer would get only six subsidised cylinders a year, at Rs 399 in the capital, and would have to pay around Rs 750 for each additional refill. But Delhi, Haryana and Assam have announced a subsidy cover for three more cylinders.

IOC has been pleading with the government to move petrol back to a controlled regime

After two months of losses, oil marketing companies (OMCs) have started making profits on sale of petrol, thanks to the softening global price and an excise cut announced by the government last week. The OMCs have begun making a margin of around Rs 1 on every litre sold. The three — Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum — were losing around Rs 6 on every litre of petrol in the first fortnight of this month. To prevent any price increase in petrol, the government last Thursday cut the excise duty by Rs 5.30 a litre. Until then, it was charging Rs 14.78 through excise on every litre. The move almost covered the loss that the OMCs were incurring on petrol.

Kochi The Kerala government on Friday wrapped up a MoU with Bharat Petroleum for a slew of petroleum and gas projects totalling an investment to the tune of Rs.20,000 crore.

Chief minister Oommen Chandy signed the pact with BPCL chairman RK Singh on the final day of the three-day Emerging Kerala meet. The agreement involves raising the production capacity of Kochi Refineries from the present 9.5 million MT to 15.5 million MT and setting up of a petrochemical complex. This would give direct employment to 10,000 people and indirect jobs to 25,000 others, marking a radical change in Kerala’s industrial annals, RK Singh said.

The two moves to cut OMCs' underrecovery by Rs 20,300 cr this year

In the second major oil sector reform after petrol decontrol of June 2010, the government on Thursday capped subsidised domestic liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for a consumer to six per year. For a consumer using 12 LPG cylinders annually, the extra outgo on six additional cylinders at current market price will be Rs 2,106. Also, the diesel price was increased by Rs 5 a litre, while the excise duty on petrol was reduced by Rs 5.30 a litre to avoid a price increase.

The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (ATE) on Wednesday issued notices to the three PSU oil marketing companies IndianOil (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) on petition

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