Bill introduced to promote ease of business in oil and gas E&P sector

New Delhi: Union minister for petroleum and natural gas Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday tabled a bill aimed at promoting ease of doing business in the oil and gas sector along with supporting India's energy transition.

The Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill, 2024, tabled in the Rajya Sabha, aims to decriminalize some of the provisions of the original 1948 law by introducing “penalties, adjudication by an adjudicating authority and appeal as against the order of adjudicating authority”. 

The bill's statement of object noted that the existing law was framed in a very different global energy context, and requires to be amended to meet India's needs and aspirations for energy access, security and affordability.

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Noting that there is an urgent need to increase domestic production of oil and gas to meet rising demand and reduce import dependence, the bill said: "In order to unlock valuable mineral oil resources, it is necessary to attract investment in the sector to infuse necessary capital and technology for expediting petroleum operations in the country by creating an investor friendly environment that promotes ease of doing business, prospects for exploration, development and production of all types of hydrocarbons, ensures stability, promotes adequate opportunities for risk mitigation, addresses energy transition issues including next-generation cleaner fuels and provides for a robust enforcement mechanism for ensuring compliance of the provisions of the said Act."

The bill aims to enable development of comprehensive energy projects for harnessing wind and solar energy along with mineral oils at oilfields.

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In the bill, the ministry also proposes to introduce ‘petroleum lease’ and has expanded the definition of mineral oils to include crude oil, natural gas, petroleum, condensate, coal bed methane, oil shale, shale gas, shale oil, tight gas, tight oil and gas hydrate. 

Besides, it separates mining operations from petroleum operations.

The move is in line with the government's target to install 500 GW of non-fossil power generation capacity by 2030.

In a bid to increase domestic production of oil and ensuring energy security, the bill proposes to strengthen petroleum operations through rules framed for governing various functional aspects, such as grants of leases or licences, their extension or renewal, sharing of production and processing facilities including infrastructure and safety at oilfields. It also proposes to providing for "efficacious" dispute resolution.

The government has been emphasizing the need to increase India's oil and gas production and this bill is an effort on that front. The move gains significance as India is a net importer of crude oil, dependent on foreign sources for 85% of its energy requirement.