India to secure energy at affordable cost: Deora

India has put in place a multi pronged strategy that encompasses faster exploration and acquisition of oil fields abroad, to ensure energy acquisition at economical rates.

Petroleum minister Murli Deora stated this at the Petrotech conference in the New Delhi today. He said globally natural gas was the fastest growing and most preferred fuel was poised to assume centre stage in the energy map of India.
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Therefore, he said, the strategy included faster exploration of domestic sedimentary basins to enhance indigenous production of fuel from the existing producing fields, acquisitions abroad to supplement domestic production and development as well as commercialisation of alternative fuels.

Deora said that substantial progress had been achieved in restructuring the petroleum sector with a policy shift towards a competitive market economy, including increasing private sector and international participation in all important segments of the industry.

The government and the oil companies are absorbing 87 per cent of the difference between the cost of imports and domestic oil prices to protect the growth momentum of the economy and consumers from adverse impact of oil price hike.

Quoting from a UN report on energy that says the current availability of energy services fail to meet the needs of the poor, Deora said that more needed to be done to provide sustainable fuels to all section of society at an affordable cost.

He said that the government's decision to introduce ethanol-blended auto fuels would not only be more environment friendly but put more income in the hands of farmers. Deora stressed that the development of renewable energies need to be accelerated and more thrust on research and development should be given.