The demand of Reliance Industries for a higher price for the gas produced from the Krishna-Godavari basin has found opposition from another new quarter. The CPIM on Tuesday criticised the Reliance proposal and urged the Centre not to allow an unfair price for the gas.
Coming down heavily against the proposal currently being looked into by an empowered GoM headed by external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee, the party?s politburo said that the RIL?s proposition on gas price is ?artificially inflated? and should be rejected.It said the government should ensure that private players are ?not exploiting country?s natural resources.? The party has also urged the EGOM to decide on a price ?that is based on actual production costs plus reasonable profit.?
?The Reliance Industries Ltd. has proposed $ 4.33 per MMBTU which is designed to ensure windfall profits for the private contractor for exploiting natural resources of the country. The present price formulation made by RIL in 2007 is in no way consistent with the price of $2.34 quoted by the same RIL in 2004 for supplying gas from the same KG Basin in 2004 to NTPC through a international competitive bidding,? the party politburo said in a statement.
?Allowing the private contractor to fix the gas price at such a high level would severely affect the viability of the industries like power and fertilizers who want to switch over to gas as a cheaper and cleaner fuel and it will also affect the common people in a big way. Gas being a natural resource and a national property as well, It should not be left to market forces for determining prices,? the statement added.