Kirit Parikh committee on energy policy will surprise us
Dont expect the governments latest committee on energy policy to meekly follow the official line.
We understand from the first meeting of the Kirit Parikh committee on 26th August that it will offer solutions that might not necessarily please the government or oil minister Mani Shankar Aiyar. For one, committee members appear reluctant to endorse Aiyars proposal to rationalise the oil and gas sector through a series of mergers and acquisitions that would result in two mega companies: Indian Oil and ONGC.
Instead, it appears to favour the creation of one oil and gas major in India that could compete internationally and privatisation of the rest. Contrast this with the anti-privatisation noises emanating from some of the Congress allies in and out of government.
This is indicative of the independent nature of the committee, one committee member tells PETROWATCH. We are not working with any pre-conceived notions.