LOW OIL PRICE RELIEF FOR OIL BIL
Estimates prepared by the Ministry for Petroleum & Natural Gas show that Indias oil import bill for 1998-99 is expected to be $5.78bn - $720m less than earlier estimates of $6.5bn.
India had originally sanctioned $8.4bn for oil imports during the current fiscal. In earlier estimates, the Oil Coordination Committee (OCC) took the crude price of $12 a barrel for April-August 1998 period, and $16 a barrel for the September-March.
However, prices continue to hovering around $10 a barrel. Meanwhile, figures from the oil ministry also show that domestic crude oil production in the period April-November 1998 dropped to 21.67m tonnes, compared to 22.58m tonnes over the same period last year.