Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India needs major investments in the traditional oil and gas sector on Monday.
Inaugurating the first edition of the India Energy Week 2023 in Bengaluru, the Prime Minister asked investors to explore opportunities in India’s energy sector.
“India’s current capacity is around 250 MMTPA (Million Metric Tonne Per Annum), which is being rapidly increased to 450 MMTPA. We are indigenous, modernising and upgrading our refining industry in Kolkata. We are also working very fast towards increasing our petrochemical production capacity. You can expand your energy landscape by tapping into India’s rich technology potential and growing start-up ecosystem,” said the Prime Minister.
Speaking about the country’s emphasis on promoting domestic exploration and production, Modi said that the government reduced the ‘No-Go’ areas.
A 1 million lakh square kilometres area has been exempted from ‘No-Go’ restrictions.
“If we look at the statistics, this reduction is more than 98%, even in No-Go areas. I would urge all investors to use these opportunities to increase our presence in the exploration of fossil fuels,” he said.
He added that India’s current share in Global Oil Demand is around 5%, but it is expected to reach 11%. India’s gas demand is expected to increase by 500%.
“Our expanding Energy Sector is creating new opportunities for investment and collaboration in India… I would again appeal to you to explore every opportunity related to India’s energy sector and engage with it. Today, India is the most suitable place in the world for your investment,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister also added that there are four major verticals of India’s strategy regarding the energy sector.
“First- Increasing Domestic Exploration and Production, Second- Diversification of Supplies, Third- Expansion of Alternative Energy Sources like Biofuels, Ethanol, Compressed Biogas and Solar and Fourth- Decarbonization through Electric Vehicle and Hydrogen,” he said.
He said the government is working on a mission to increase natural gas consumption in India’s energy mix by 2030.
Prime Minister said India has the fourth-largest crude refining capacity in the world. “Our effort is to increase LNG terminal re-gasification capacity. Our capacity in 2014 was 21 MMTPA, which doubled by 2022. Work is on to further enhance it. The number of CGD in India has also increased by 9 times compared to 2014. We also had around 900 CNG stations in 2014. Now their number is also increasing to 5 thousand,” he added.
PM Modi said India’s gas pipeline network would expand to 35,000 km in the next four-five years from 22,000 km currently.
“In 2014, the length of the gas pipeline in our country was about 14 thousand kilometres. Now it has increased to more than 22 thousand kilometres. In the next 4-5 years, the gas pipeline network in India will reach 35 thousand kilometres. That is, there are huge investment opportunities for you in India’s natural gas infrastructure,” he said.
At the event, PM Modi also launched a few initiatives, including the sale of 20% ethanol-blended petrol on a pilot basis by public sector oil marketing companies. India has already achieved 10% ethanol blending in petrol and has advanced the deadline to achieve 20% blending by five years to 2025-26.
Named E20, ethanol-blended petrol will be introduced in 15 cities first and will be extended to different parts of the country soon, Modi said. Similarly, the twin cooktop Indian solar cooker, also launched at the event, will be supplied to 3 crore families in the next two to three years, he added.
At the beginning of his speech, the Prime Minister also paid respects to those affected by the earthquake in Turkey. “Our eyes are on the devastating earthquake in Turkey. Sad news of many people’s deaths and many losses. Damage is also expected in the countries around Turkey. The sentiments of the 140-crore people of India are with all the earthquake victims. India is ready to provide all possible help to the earthquake victims,” he said.
