By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: India’s crude oil and condensate production during the year 2020-21 is lower than the production level of 2019-20 and far below its target, according to the economic survey 2021-22.
The total crude oil and condensate production during the year 2020-21 was 30.49 million metric tonnes (MMT) while in 2019-20 it was 32.17 MMT. It is 94.3 per cent of the target of 32.32 MMT.
Similarly, the natural gas production during the year 2020-21 was 28.67 billion cubic meters (BCM) as against the production of 31.18 BCM in 2019-20 and 85.4 per cent against the target of 33.57 BCM for 2020-21.
“The reasons for lower domestic oil and gas production in 2020-21 include, inter[1]alia, declining production from old and marginal fields, unplanned shutdown and operational losses from few producing wells,” reads the Economic Survey.
India is 85 per cent reliant on imports to meet its crude oil needs as domestic output is insufficient to meet the demand.
Crude oil processed too witnessed a decline during this fiscal as it was 221.77 MMT as of against 254.39 MMT in 2019-20. The shortfall in crude oil processing was mainly due to the lower demand of petroleum products due to Covid-19 during 2020-21.
The production of petroleum products was 233.51 MMT in 2020-21 as against 258.18 MMT in 2019-20, showing an achievement of 90.2 per cent of the target of 259.02 MMT for 2020- 21. The consumption of petroleum products in India was 194.30 MMT, lower by 9.3 per cent as compared to consumption of 214.13 MMT during 2019-20.
The survey also noted that the petroleum sector played a critical role throughout the Covid-19 lockdown period by maintaining fuel supplies across the country, without any interruption. The scheme of three free cylinders to Ujjwala beneficiaries provided much-needed relief to the poor households during Covid times.
At the same time, the government has introduced several measures in the sector including the launching of the Akshya Bharat Portal that requires all oil and gas organisations to upload details of various items procured by them including the future requirements.
The portal is planned to mature into a central information pool for sourcing of capital goods and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) of items of the oil and gas companies which in turn is expected to provide clear demand projections to enable the manufacturers to enhance their capacity and scope.
