Page 57 - Policy Economic Report_Feb'25

POLICY AND ECONOMIC REPORT
OIL & GAS MARKET

For OALP Round-X, a new e-bidding portal is available for transparent and secure bidding with additional
ease of doing business features. OALP bid Round-X comes after ORD amendment. The latest round of
OALP bids is the first to be launched after the introduction of the Oilfields (Regulation and Development)
Amendment Bill, 2024, in Lok Sabha. The bill has already been passed by Rajya Sabha in December 2024
and now awaits clearance from Lok Sabha. Sources said that with the launch of the largest OALP bid round,
the government is hoping to attract interest from foreign bidders this time. The amendment separates
petroleum lease from mining lease and strives to offer leases on stable terms. It also introduces a simpler
business regime and streamlines clearances.

The OALP Round-X was launched by Puri in the presence of British Secretary of State for energy and
climate change, Edward Miliband, Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, and Doto Mashaka
Biteko, the deputy Prime Minister of Tanzania. It comes over a year after OALP IX bidding opened in
January 2024. The government has so far received limited interest from private players under the OALP
regime, with PSUs bagging most of the blocks. With ORD amendment on the way, it remains to be seen if
this round will attract interest from private and foreign players, in addition to state-owned
upstream companies.

Fourth India-UK Energy Dialogue - Advancing India’s energy transition

The Fourth India-UK Energy Dialogue, co-chaired by Shri Manohar Lal, Union Minister of Power and
Housing and Urban Affairs of India, and Mr. Ed Miliband, Secretary for Energy Security and Net Zero for
United Kingdom.

The dialogue focused on reviewing progress made in the energy sectors of both nations, including power
and renewable energy, and reaffirming the commitment to a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive energy
future. The Ministers underscored the importance of ensuring that the energy transition and economic
growth proceed together, while maintaining affordable and clean energy access for all.

The Ministers underscored the importance of ensuring energy security and sustainable development and
emphasized expanding the cooperation in the areas of power distribution, sector reforms, industrial
energy efficiency and de-carbonization, and electric mobility while exploring new opportunities in the
emerging fields such as energy storage, green data centers, and offshore wind, with an increased focus
on MSMEs.

The Ministers were pleased to announce the launch of Phase-2 of the India-UK bilateral Accelerating
Smart Power & Renewable Energy in India (ASPIRE) programme. This phase will aim to provide technical
support for ensuring round-the-clock power supply, expanding renewable energy initiatives, and
accelerating industrial energy efficiency and de-carbonization, in collaboration with the Ministry of Power
(MOP) and Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).

The Ministers were pleased to observe the bilateral collaboration between the two sides to promote
growth and jobs, through technical assistance cooperation and investment. They also discussed the

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