First Meeting of Consultative Committee of Ministry of Petroleum
The first meeting of Consultative Committee of Ministry of Petroleum was chaired by the Minister of Petroleum Shri Dharmendra Pradhan.
Highlights of the meet
The committee announced that Government of India is working towards a transformative change in energy sector. It is planning to increase share of Natural gas in the energy sector from 6.2% to 15% by 2030. The committee has given a strong policy thrust to support Natural Gas enabling infrastructure.
Also, the contribution of biofuels and its usage are to be increased. The committee pointed out already existed government measures to increase the use of biofuels
Government measures of Biofuels
GoI introduced Ethanol Blended Programme to reduce dependency of oi imports, address environmental concerns and to boost agriculture sector. Government re-introduced administered price mechanism, amended Industries (Development and Regulation) act, 1951, reduced GST rates of ethanol from 18% to 5%.
Current Scenario
Today in India, oil public sector units like Indian Oil Corporation are establishing Ethanol bio-refineries. Around 12 such refineries in 11 states are being established. Currently, the biofuels are produced in accordance with National Biofuel Policy, 2018. It targets 5% blending of biodiesel in diesel by 2030. Under SATAT (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation), 5000 Compressed Bio Gas Plants are to constructed by 2023. The initiative aims at generating 15 million metric tonnes of biogas per annum
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Month: Current Affairs - December, 2019