Amidst a row over his ministry's proposal to raise natural gas prices, Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily on Wednesday said the revision in rates was a contractual requirement which will help remove policy uncertainty and spur investments that have almost dried up.
With domestic and international companies as well as the government's technical advisor DGH finding the current rate of $4.2 uneconomical to produce gas from deep-sea fields, Moily has proposed to price all domestic gas at a uniform rate suggested by a panel headed by PMEAC chief C Rangarajan.
"Investors want to know the direction we are going in before they can plan investments. If we shrink our responsibility, no investment will come," Moily said.
India has vast resources that can help cut $160 billion oil import bill but without the right pricing and policy regime, resources will remain trapped inside earth, he said. He has proposed raising prices to at least $6.775 per million British thermal unit for both PSU companies like ONGC as well as private firms like RIL.
