Delhi Solar Energy Policy, 2023
The Delhi government launched the Delhi Solar Policy 2023, in which residents consuming over 400 units of electricity can install solar panels bring electricity bill charge to zero. Under the newly launched
Energy Policy
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City gas firms lock horns with regulator
'Unauthorised' laying of new pipelines cannot be allowed, says gas regulator. The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) seems to be heading for a collision with the gas distribution companies that it is supposed to regulate. According to the gas regulator, no company can build or expand a gas distribution network without the permission of the PNGRB. However, leading gas distribtion companies are laying new pipelines every day without its permission. "Permissions are not needed for each locality separately. We have the permission to operate in Delhi and the city is one geographical area,' said Om Narayan, managing director of Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL), which retails gas to households and vehicles in Delhi. The regulator, in October last year, had pulled up IGL for expanding its pipeline network to the city's Vasant Vihar area without seeking its permission. The company, however, continues to expand, with it now laying pipelines in Vasant Kunj. A host of other companies already in the business are also expanding their network "in order to meet consumer demand'. Maharashtra Natural Gas Ltd, for instance, which distributes gas in Pune, is also on an expansion spree, without an express "permission' from the regulator. "The ruling does not apply to us,' says TK Majumder, managing director of the company. All of these companies started operations before the regulator formally came into being on October 1, 2007. Their city of operation was chosen for them by the petroleum ministry after directions came from the Supreme Court. The regulator is planning strict action against these companies. "We have issued notices to all of these companies. Strict action will be taken against these companies which are expanding their network without our permission,' said a member of the regulatory board. According to the regulator, existing city gas distributors will have to reapply to the regulator for "authorisation' to operate and expand in their cities. The deadline for reapplying is March 31. "It appears that almost all entities which are in business are without authorisation,' said PNGRB chairman, L Mansingh. The companies say they are expanding despite the regulator's directive as the demand for gas in cities is continuously growing. "Even the state government officials keep urging to speed up our expansion,' said SP Selvam, managing director of Central UP Gas Ltd, which distributes gas in cities such as Kanpur and Bareilli, and is planning to spread to Allahabad and Varanasi. "We cannot wait for permission,' IGL's Narayan said. THE MISSING SECTION 16 The crux of the problem lies in interpretation of the powers of the regulatory board, which was notified on October 1, 2007, after the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act was passed in Parliament in 2006. The government, however, has not yet notified Section 16 of the Act, which deals with companies which already have city gas distribution operations. "Since Section 16 is not notified, the regulator has no way to deal with existing companies,' the chief of another existing city gas distribution company said. A regulatory board member however reads the issue differently. "In the absence of the Section, there is no directive on the working of the existing companies. So, all incremental works by the companies will need approvals,' the official said. Some companies are keen to eschew a fight with the regulator. A Vishwanadha Sarma, managing director of Bhayanagar Gas Ltd, which distributes gas in Vijaywada and Hyderabad, is one of them. "We are not expanding at all till there are directives from the regulator, which are likely to come once the final city gas regulations are notified (by mid-March 2008),' he said. "It is no point locking horns with the regulator.'
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Climate change after Bali
Do the math: affordable new technologies can prevent global warming while fostering growth. March 2008
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Separate feeders for homes, fields in Maharashtra
as part of the power sector reforms in Maharashtra, a government-owned distributor will separate feeders that service homes from those that feed agricultural pumpsets. Expected to complete over two
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EU's energy plan offers relief to eastern nations
the European Union has come up with a new energy plan. It envisages reducing emissions by 20 per cent by 2020. eu will convert a fifth of its energy to renewable energy and biofuels by then. On
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No time to lose in cutting CO2 emissions
We should not wait to cut back on burning fossil fuels until we have developed greener technology to supply our energy needs, despite what many economists are advising their respective governments. Such a waiting game may have deadly consequences. Feb 27, 2008
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A low-carbon, technology-driven strategy for India's energy security
Energy security has to go hand in hand with economic development and environmental protection.
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Jan Kerosene Pariyojana: Impact and future policy responses
Jan Kerosene Pariyojana was launched to revamp the subsidised kerosene distribution measure in the country. Initial impact analysis leads us to believe that the scheme has the potential to realise the intended reforms. Feb 23-29, 2008
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'Coal reserves enough to meet energy needs for 350 years'
Advisor to caretaker Prime Minister and Chairman, Pakistan State Oil (PSO), Sardar Yaseen Malik, has said that Pakistan has enough coal reserves to meet its energy requirement for the next 350 years. Speaking at a reception, hosted by Honorary Consul General of Albania Zafar Ansari, he said that the government was working on various alternative energy projects to meet the energy requirement. Referring to the PSO, he said that the PSO was meeting around 70 percent oil requirement of the country and its daily sale on working days was around Rs 1.5 billion.
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India must tap natural resources: Kakodkar
India is still an energy deficit country and it will need 1,370 GWs of energy by the middle of the present century. At present the country had only one-tenth of that figure, said Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission Anil Kakodkar. Delivering the keynote address at the six-day National Training Programme on the theme
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India must return to Eurasian energy game
Central Asia is a difficult region, but with the right mix of political and financial capital, India could still make headway. If the great game over the energy resources of the Caspian Sea and Central Asia were to be compared to a five-act Shakespearean play, we might say Act III, Scene I has just begun. On a Venice street, Shylock famously posits to Salarino the metaphorical relationship of intricate counter-balances: "If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?'