THE government has directed Reliance Industries (RIL) to sell gas from the D6 Krishna Godavari basin in accordance with the marketing priorities determined by the government. RIL has been directed to give priority to fertiliser plants, followed by LPG and existing power plants while allocating gas. The company has also been directed to sell gas based on the formula approved by the government. The empowered group of ministers (EGoM), headed by external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee, which examined issues relating to pricing and commercial utilisation of gas under the New Exploration Licensing Policy (Nelp), said the companies "would sell gas from Nelp to consumers in accordance with the marketing priorities determined by the government, and the sale would be on the basis of formula for determining the price as approved by the government'. The EGoM has fixed priority for the 25 million standard cu m per day (mmscmd) of gas RIL plans to start pumping from September this year and 40 mmscmd from March 2009. It has asked the company to first supply gas from KGD6 field to gas-based urea plants, which are fuel-starved. After urea plants, a maximum quantity of 3 mmscmd would be supplied to gas-based LPG plants, and thereafter up to 18 mmscmd to gas-based power plants that were lying idle/underutilised or likely to be commissioned in 2008-09, or liquid fuel plants, which are running on liquid fuel and could switch to natural gas. A maximum quantity of 5 mmscmd would also be made available to city gas distribution projects for supply of piped natural gas (PNG) to households and compressed natural gas (CNG) in transport sector, an official statement said. Any additional gas available beyond these categories would be supplied to existing gas-based power plants, as their requirement is more than 18 mmscmd, the statement added. RIL had won the KG-D6 block in the first round of auction under Nelp in 1999, and in September 2007, the same EGoM had approved a price of $4.20 per million British thermal unit for the gas to be produced from the block. Consumers belonging to any of the priority sectors should be in a position to consume gas as and when it becomes available. "So, the marketing priority does not entail reservation of gas. It implies that in case consumers in a particular sector, which is higher in priority, are not in a position to take gas when it becomes available, it would go to the sector which is next in order of priority,' the statement said.