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India to get $60 bn funding for gas infra; demand to triple for achieving 15% share in energy pie: Pradhan
Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan today said that India’s natural gas sector will witness $60-billion investment in the coming days and added that the country will require 600 million standard cubic meter per day (mmscmd) of gas in order to push its share to 15 per cent in the energy basket.
“If in the coming years we have to achieve a target of 15 per cent gas share in the energy basket then we will require 600 mmscmd of gas. We are currently producing around 80-90 mmscmd of gas, a similar quantity is imported by us. So, from 180-190 mmscmd currently we need to push it to 600 mmscmd,” Pradhan said in an event organised by FICCI.
The minister said that the government will come out with a commercial model for converting domestic coal, high ash content coal and petcoke to syngas which would lead to industry players receiving syngas at the burner tip for around $6-$7, adding, that the first plant will be commissioned in Odisha soon.
Pradhan highlighted that with India now moving towards achieving 450 GW of renewable energy capacity there is no doubt among industry players and government that natural gas will be the right fit to balance the power grid.
The ministry expects compressed biogas plants being set up under the Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation scheme to produce around 10-15 Million Tonne of oil equivalent gas in the coming years and added that the government has issued 500 Letter of Intent to set-up such plants across the country.
Pradhan said that India’s gas market is moving towards market-based pricing and India Energy Exchange plans to start a natural gas trading hub soon, with Petroleum Natural Gas and Regulatory Board assisting the exchange with a regulatory framework.
Pradhan said that the ministry expects natural gas and aviation turbine fuel to be included in the goods and services tax soon and added that while domestic natural gas production is projected to increase in the coming years, crude oil production will be flat.
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