Petroleum Secretary Naraj Mittal announced that the central government will oblige private fuel retailers across the country to cease imposing restrictions on the sale of diesel and gasoline at retail outlets.
Private Indian oil refining companies, such as Reliance Industries and Nayara Energy, have implemented restrictions on fuel sales in their retail networks to minimize losses from selling fuel below market prices. According to a report, at Jio-bp outlets, the daily purchase limit for diesel per customer was restricted to 50 liters, while at Nayara stores, limits ranged from 70 to 200 liters.
Mittal emphasized: 'No one is allowed to set a sales limit. They are doing it, and we will take action. We will tell them that this is unacceptable. Instructions were previously issued; the same applies today. The government's position has not changed.'
Amid the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, oil marketing companies are incurring losses from the sale of gasoline, diesel, and liquefied petroleum gas (cooking gas). Commenting on the escalating tensions in the region, Union Minister of Energy Hardeep Singh Puri noted that India's 'period of unease' has not yet ended. However, Puri added that Indian consumers are protected from sharp increases in energy prices.
Mittal also pointed out that the Middle East crisis highlighted the need to increase the share of natural gas in India's energy balance, as the country should not depend on a single type of fuel. He noted: 'We need to learn lessons from the recent crisis. India largely avoided damage from this crisis. We did not see price hikes, nor did we see shortages. We have not seen complaints from households about lack of energy.'
As part of efforts to increase the share of natural gas to 15 percent of India's total energy balance, the government plans to tenfold increase compressed biogas (CBG) production. Under the GOBARdhan scheme (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan), which provides financial support for CBG production, the government will provide support of up to 2 crore rupees per ton per day of installed capacity.
Furthermore, under the guidance of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board, the government has launched the National PNG 3.0 campaign with the aim of connecting 5 million new domestic piped gas (D-PNG) connections to promote wider use of natural gas. An online portal, MyPNG, has also been launched to provide PNG-related information and simplify communication between consumers and city gas distribution companies.
