NEW DELHI: Pledging to make India’s oil and gas sector transparent and attractive for foreign investors, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday said the government was in the process of reducing its import for domestic energy requirement by 10% in the next 6-7 years.
“…we want to cut down India’s import dependence for domestic energy needs by 10% in the next 6-7 years. We are keen to make India’s oil and gas sector fair, transparent and attractive for domestic and foreign investors through appropriate policy, regulatory and fiscal interventions” the minister said at the launch of the India Energy Outlook by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in New Delhi.
Citing the World Energy Report 2015, the Petroleum Minister said that developing Asian countries, including China and India, account for almost 50% of rise in global gas demand and 75% of the increase in LNG imports.
The report also projects that India’s oil import dependence will increase above 90% by 2040.
“With a large economy, growing population with low per capita energy consumption, an expanding middle-class and increasing urbanization, there is only one way for India’s energy demands to go : that is up,” he said.
According to the India Energy Outlook released by the IEA on Friday, the country needs more than Rs.9 lakh crore ($140 billion) per year in investment to meet its rapidly growing energy needs.
By 2040, the report said, India’s energy demand will be close to that of the United States, even though demand per capita will still remain 40% below the world average.
Of the total annual estimated investments, around Rs.7 lakh crore ($110 billion) will need in energy supply – 75% of which is required to meet India’s burgeoning need for electricity – and a Rs.2 lakh crore ($30 billion) to improve energy efficiency, the IEA said.
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