Policy on CBM in a week, shale in a fortnight

After unleashing a frontal attack on subsidies and increasing the pricing freedom of oil companies, the government is set to unwrap key policy initiatives this month with a view to augmenting the country’s energy security. These include a new policy to attract investors to shale gas — a relatively new energy source successfully tapped by the US and Canada — and a potentially more remunerative regime for investors in coal bed methane (CBM) blocks.