Hardeep Singh Puri said that the world is facing a crisis of 3F – ‘Food, Fuel and Fertilizer’. (file)
New Delhi:
Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday that India is likely to invest $58 billion in exploration and production of oil and gas resources by 2023.
India, the world’s third largest oil consumer and importer, is looking to increase domestic production to help reduce dependence on costly imports. India imports 85 percent of its crude oil, which is converted into petrol and diesel, and about half of its natural gas is converted into CNG and used in industries.
Speaking at the Voice of the Global South Summit, Hardeep Singh Puri said the government aims to increase the geographical area under exploration and production to 0.5 million sq km by 2025, or 15 per cent, from the current 0.25 million sq km.
“We are expecting an investment of about $58 billion in exploration and production (of oil and gas) by 2023,” he said. “Several multinational corporations such as Chevron, ExxonMobil and Total Energy are showing keen interest in investing in the Indian E&P sector.” He said, India is ready to “explore opportunities for joint development and production of oil and gas assets for mutual benefit and invite investment in our domestic E&P sector”.
Hardeep Singh Puri said that the world is facing an unprecedented crisis of 3F’s – ‘Food, Fuel and Fertilizer’. “We are seeing extreme price volatility in energy molecules. The most acute effects are felt in the global south.” Despite these challenging circumstances, the government has taken several measures to maintain energy security for its citizens.
These include diversification of supply, increase in alternative energy sources such as bio-fuels, ethanol and compressed biogas, increasing E&P footprint with increased focus on domestic production; and meeting energy targets through EVs and hydrogen.
“All of these measures provide easy replication to achieve our respective energy security goals,” he added.
He said that India has increased ethanol blending in petrol from 1.53 per cent in 2013-14 to 10.17 per cent in 2022, well ahead of the November 2022 deadline and ahead of its target of achieving 20 per cent ethanol blending in petrol. extended. 2030 to 2025-26.
“To address the common concerns of the Global South, India is proposing to form a Global Biofuel Alliance under the G20,” he said.
“The purpose of the alliance is to support projects to increase the deployment of biofuels and related technology, offer alternative means of sustainable energy, and ultimately move among the largest producers and consumers of biofuels in their trade.” E20, or petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol, will be introduced in 11 states and union territories, much before the initial target date of April 1, 2023. “15 cities will be covered under Phase-I. We are targeting a phased rollout of E20 across the country between now and April 2025,” he said.
In addition, the government is targeting to set up a production capacity of 15 million tonnes of Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) from 5,000 plants by 2023 with an investment of USD 20 billion.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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