Other States - Rajasthan   

Raje Govt. asks Centre to share "profit petroleum"

Special Correspondent

"Matter should be examined in the light of the New Exploration Licensing Policy"

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan Government has demanded that the Centre share "profit petroleum'' in the ratio of 50:50 with the States where mineral oil and natural gas are produced in the blocks allotted under joint ventures. The matter should be examined in the light of the New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP), according to the State Government. In a letter addressed to the Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Murli Deora, Rajasthan Mines and Petroleum Minister Laxminarain Dave pointed out that giving 50 per cent share to States would remove the anomaly in implementation of joint venture and NELP.

Mr. Dave said the joint venture blocks had the similar process of grant as that of the NELP blocks, including the global competitive bidding, production sharing contract and the concept of profit petroleum. The Central Government gets profit petroleum from the joint venture blocks at par with the NELP blocks, but no dispensation of share with the State Governments has been considered for the JV blocks.

Mr. Dave stated that a resolution of the Union Ministry of Petroleum of March 17, 2003, providing for a tapering rate of royalty at the rate of 1.5 per cent every year so as to reduce the royalty rate to 12.5 per cent by 2011-12 -- facilitating convergence with the NELP rates -- would lead to a loss of income amounting to Rs. 25,000 crores to Rajasthan.

The Minister drew the Centre's attention to one of the recommendations of the Twelfth Finance Commission putting a restriction on giving to States the share of profit petroleum from the blocks allotted under joint venture or any other system, and sought its immediate review.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Raje Govt. asks Centre to share "profit petroleum"
Nation-wide `drive against bribe' campaign kicks off in Pink City

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu