The Cabinet on Thursday approved a Rs8,000-crore scheme to provide cooking gas (lPG) connections free of cost to women members of poor households. The Cabinet also cleared a proposal to amend the MMDR Act to include the provisions of allowing transfer of captive mines granted through procedures other than auction.
The Cabinet approved the Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana with an outlay of Rs8,000 crore for three years, said Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The scheme aims to provide on a war footing lPG connections to women members of BPl families.
“The Scheme will be continued for at least two more years to cover a total of 5 crore BPl households. This will ensure universal coverage of cooking gas in the country. The move is aimed at empowering women and protecting their health,” said Pradhan.
Government cleared a proposal to amend the MMDR Act [Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act] to include the provisions of allowing transfer of captive mines granted through procedures other than auction.
The step will not only help in checking the stressed and non-performing assets of banks by allowing them to liquidate the same where a firm or its captive mining lease is mortgaged, but will spur mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the sector. The MMDR Act, passed by Parliament in March last year, only allows transfer of mining leases in cases where the mine has been acquired through auction.
Cabinet also approved extending licences of 28 small- and medium-sized oil and gas fields, but there was no decision on Cairn India’s prolific Rajasthan oil block. Production sharing contracts (PSCs) for as many as 28 fields, including western offshore Panna/Mukta and Tapti oil and gas fields operated by BG Group of UK, are due for extension.
“The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Thursday approved the Hydrocarbon Exploration licensing Policy, or HElP, extending term of 28 PSCs,” said Pradhan.
In a boost to firms like ONGC and Reliance Industries, the Cabinet on Thursday approved a new price formula for their undeveloped gas discoveries in difficult areas, which will lead to a near-doubling of rates. While domestically-produced gas is currently priced at an average of rates in gas-surplus countries like the US, Canada and Russia, for deep-sea discoveries yet to be developed, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved a price indexed to cost of alternative fuels — naphtha and fuel oil as well as imported lNG.
Pradhan said the price will be the lowest of weighted average of fuel oil and imported lNG or weighted average of fuel oil, naphtha and imported coal. With the current rates, the price of gas will come to $7 per million British thermal unit (mmBtu). Gas price in India is currently at $3.82 per mmBtu, which will fall to $3.15 in April, a rate not enough to make up for the cost of deep-sea development.
“The new price will apply to undeveloped gas discoveries and not on currently producing fields,” Pradhan said.