India's Oil Ministry Focuses on Exploration, Green Hydrogen, and Gas Consumption
Key Ideas
- Minister Puri aims to boost oil and gas exploration, promote green hydrogen, and increase gas consumption.
- Consideration of petrol and diesel price cuts if crude oil remains around $80 per barrel for an extended period.
- India's fuel prices have decreased amidst global geopolitical tensions, with focus on production and upcoming rounds of exploration.
- State-run oil companies have cut prices previously, with plans for further exploration rounds and increased gas consumption.
The Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas in India, Hardeep Singh Puri, highlighted the government's focus on boosting oil and gas exploration, promoting green hydrogen, and increasing gas consumption. He mentioned the possibility of considering a reduction in petrol and diesel prices if crude oil prices stabilize around $80 per barrel over a sustained period. Despite ongoing supply cuts by OPEC, crude oil prices are currently below $80 per barrel. Minister Puri noted that India has witnessed a decline in fuel prices while global tensions escalated due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The state-run oil marketing companies previously lowered petrol and diesel prices by Rs 2 per liter in March. The government plans to enhance production, with ONGC's 98/2 block expected to reach peak production soon. Additionally, the oil ministry will conduct the ninth and tenth rounds of Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) in the upcoming weeks to further explore resources in the country.