08 August 2018: UPSC Exam PIB Summary & Analysis

Read the daily PIB update and stay up-to-date on current affairs for the UPSC exam

NITI Aayog and CII Launch Partnership on SDGs

• “Business & government partnership needs to be harnessed to achieve greater good”, -Raj Kumar Singh
• The Minister said that in sustainable development three things matter the most: energy, water and circular economy/green industry. To action his 2022 agenda, he expressed confidence that India will achieve its clean energy goals even earlier than 2022 and urged everyone to be conscious and responsible towards the environment.
• CII-NITI Aayog have entered into a three-year partnership and a MoU was signed.
• This partnership focuses on specific activities that seeks to develop:

1. Vision and Action Agenda for businesses and industries to contribute to SDGs;
2. Annual Status Reports;
3. Sector-specific Best Practise Documents.

Discovered Small Field Policy

• Bid round –II under Discovered Small Field Policy will be launched on 9th August, 2018.

Background:

• India is the world’s fifth-largest economy with the size of over 2.6 Trillion USD. Recently, it surpassed France and soon India is set to leapfrog Britain to become the fourth-largest economy.
• India is the 3rd largest energy consumer in the world. Its energy consumption is expected to grow by 4.2% p.a. which is faster than all major economies.
• According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), India is expected to account for almost one-third of the global growth in energy demand by 2040.
• To maintain the thrust on economic growth, it is imperative that the country’s Oil & Gas sector grows consistently so as to enable energy security and accessibility to its people.

Policy reforms in this sector:

• In addition to several other reforms, Government has implemented new contracting policies such as the Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP), and the Discovered Small Fields (DSF) policy.
• These are primarily based on the four energy pillars as laid by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi viz. Energy Access, Energy Efficiency, Energy Sustainability and Energy Security.

About Discovered Small Fields Policy:

• It provides an easy investment option for new and existing players with minimal risk.
• DSF Bid Round-I launched by the Government, was a splendid success and was completed in a record time of 10 months.
• It received overwhelming success with 134 bidders for 34 blocks on offer.
• 30 contracts were awarded to 20 companies out of which 13 were new entrants in E&P sector.
• First oil/gas is expected in 2019-20.

Features of DSF Bid Round–II are as below:

1. No previous technical experience required for bidders, easy entry & investor friendly policy
2. Expected to offer around 60* discoveries clubbed into around 26* new contract areas
3. Large field areas on offer in already producing basins
4. Established Hydrocarbon resource base of over 190 MMT (O+OEG)
5. Better fiscal system through Revenue Sharing Contracts
6. Area having oil/gas discoveries;
7. Potential of upsides in the area;
8. Ready processing facilities nearby;
9. Ready market
10. Easy bidding process; minimum requirements; transparent award; swift processing of approvals
11. Single licence for all types of hydrocarbons
12. No signature bonus
13. Exploration allowed during the entire contract period
14. Full pricing and marketing freedom
15. Royalty rates further reduced for shallow water compared to DSF-I

FAGMIL receives LoI from Himachal Pradesh Government

• FCI Aravali Gypsum and Minerals India Limited (FAGMIL), a CPSU under the administrative control of the Department of Fertilizers, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Government of India has received a Letter of Intent (LoI) from the Government of Himachal Pradesh for grant of mining lease for setting up of White Cement Plant to cater to the demand of white cement in North India.
• An MoU will be signed between FAGMIL and Government of Himachal Pradesh for the same. This will be the first PSU white cement plant in India.
• The Lime Stone excavated from the mine will be utilized for the manufacturing of White Cement in India, there are only two white cement plants in operation at present.
• The pre-feasibility study has been done by National Council for Cement and Building Materials, Ballabgarh (Haryana). Further activities are under progress.
• The installed capacity of the proposed Plant will be 1000 TPD. Direct and indirect employment generation would be around 200 and 3000 respectively.
• The plant would be installed using the latest available environment friendly technology. The project shall be a land mark in the development of Nohra Dhar and nearby areas of Himachal Pradesh.

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