EC order on natural gas, govt to consult SG or AG, Moily

Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily today said the Solicitor General or Attorney General of India would examine the EC's order asking the government to defer till after the elections the doubling of natural gas prices by companies like RIl.

"We are examining it (EC order), and because the matter is also in the Supreme Court of India, we would like our Solicitor General or Attorney General to examine it. I don't want to comment further on the issue," he told PTI here.

EC had yesterday asked the government to defer notifying doubling of price of the fuel produced by companies such as Reliance Industries till after the general elections are completed.

Moily said the government has already notified the price.

The deferment of price hike will have a large implication on investment climate, particularly in oil sector, he said.

Moily said it would also result in subsidy going up if production is hit. "Unless there is production, there is no gas. If there is no gas, import will be more than 15 to 18 dollars (per barrel). That means to say - we have to live with that kind of an import and there will be higher price. That means the subsidy will go up," he said.

He said the government has taken the decision based on the Rangarajan Committee recommendations with due process and diligence.