Petro-product price fixing done as per expert advice, says Moily
12 Feb 2014 12:40 AM GMT
‘I think I should sympathise with his ignorance. He should know how the government functions, how these things are done...I took special interest to ensure that the CNG and PNG prices are reduced. You should know that,’ Moily said.
He was reacting to Kejriwal's announcement that Delhi Government would file criminal case against former Petroleum Minister Murli Deora, Veerappa Moily, industrialist Mukesh Ambani and others on gas pricing issue. Kejriwal said the Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) of Delhi Government has been asked to probe the matter based on a complaint filed by former Cabinet Secretary TSR Subrmanian, former Navy Chief Admiral Tahiliani and eminent lawyer Kamini Jaiswal besides a former Expenditure Secretary.
‘It is not the question of Mukesh or Deora....There should be a certain system for fixing the prices. I think nothing is done without expert advise and also with regard to the availability,’ Moily said. He said, ‘Kejriwal thinks that we can take out oil just like taking water from a well in a bucket.’
‘We can not take the oil like that,’ he said. The minister said India is importing 73 to 75 per cent of the petroleum product, which requires more than $165 billion and $170 billion.
‘If he (Kejriwal) can give some money, I think we will be very happy to reduce the prices,’ Moily said.
Quoting the complaint, Kejriwal said hiking the gas price will help RIL earn profit of Rs 54,000 crore per annum.
‘The CAG had conducted an audit of these oil wells and in its report it stated that from time to time Reliance garnered windfall gains to the tune of 1.25 lakh crore,’ he alleged. The Chief Minister also questioned the move to double the price of natural gas just before Lok Sabha polls. ‘We believe that inflation is going up due to corruption. We will have to take strict actions to weed out corruption. It is a decisive battle for us,’ Kejriwal said.
He said the complaint filed with Delhi Government contained a ‘cost sheet’ according to which cost to extract gas from the wells given to RIL was below one dollar per unit.
Kejriwal said RIL had signed a contract in the year 2000 for production of gas at KG-D6 fields at $2.3 dollar per unit. ‘But after sometime they changed their stand and in collusion with some ministers, they raised the price of gas to over 4 dollar per unit. But the greed did not end there. These allegations have been made in this complaint,’ Kejriwal alleged. The Chief Minister alleged that even after raising the cost, they (RIL) did not produce much gas, so that they can ‘blackmail the government further’.
‘They were supposed to produce 80 million units, but they produce less that 18 per cent, which in turn caused artificial shortage. That led to importing of gas which resulted in inflation in the country,’ he claimed. Kejriwal said the government's argument to hike the gas price based on international rates and not on the basis of cost of production, was not acceptable. ‘Basically they were looking for some ways to inflate the price. In the complaint it is also alleged that Reliance partner NICO still today is providing gas to Bangladesh at $2.34 dollar per unit,’ he said.
He was reacting to Kejriwal's announcement that Delhi Government would file criminal case against former Petroleum Minister Murli Deora, Veerappa Moily, industrialist Mukesh Ambani and others on gas pricing issue. Kejriwal said the Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) of Delhi Government has been asked to probe the matter based on a complaint filed by former Cabinet Secretary TSR Subrmanian, former Navy Chief Admiral Tahiliani and eminent lawyer Kamini Jaiswal besides a former Expenditure Secretary.
‘It is not the question of Mukesh or Deora....There should be a certain system for fixing the prices. I think nothing is done without expert advise and also with regard to the availability,’ Moily said. He said, ‘Kejriwal thinks that we can take out oil just like taking water from a well in a bucket.’
‘We can not take the oil like that,’ he said. The minister said India is importing 73 to 75 per cent of the petroleum product, which requires more than $165 billion and $170 billion.
‘If he (Kejriwal) can give some money, I think we will be very happy to reduce the prices,’ Moily said.
Quoting the complaint, Kejriwal said hiking the gas price will help RIL earn profit of Rs 54,000 crore per annum.
‘The CAG had conducted an audit of these oil wells and in its report it stated that from time to time Reliance garnered windfall gains to the tune of 1.25 lakh crore,’ he alleged. The Chief Minister also questioned the move to double the price of natural gas just before Lok Sabha polls. ‘We believe that inflation is going up due to corruption. We will have to take strict actions to weed out corruption. It is a decisive battle for us,’ Kejriwal said.
He said the complaint filed with Delhi Government contained a ‘cost sheet’ according to which cost to extract gas from the wells given to RIL was below one dollar per unit.
Kejriwal said RIL had signed a contract in the year 2000 for production of gas at KG-D6 fields at $2.3 dollar per unit. ‘But after sometime they changed their stand and in collusion with some ministers, they raised the price of gas to over 4 dollar per unit. But the greed did not end there. These allegations have been made in this complaint,’ Kejriwal alleged. The Chief Minister alleged that even after raising the cost, they (RIL) did not produce much gas, so that they can ‘blackmail the government further’.
‘They were supposed to produce 80 million units, but they produce less that 18 per cent, which in turn caused artificial shortage. That led to importing of gas which resulted in inflation in the country,’ he claimed. Kejriwal said the government's argument to hike the gas price based on international rates and not on the basis of cost of production, was not acceptable. ‘Basically they were looking for some ways to inflate the price. In the complaint it is also alleged that Reliance partner NICO still today is providing gas to Bangladesh at $2.34 dollar per unit,’ he said.
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