Hardeep Singh Puri
| Photo Credit: –
Union Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Housing & Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri said India’s recent reforms in the energy sector, including diversification of sources of imports, and changes in gas-pricing mechanism, had ensured prices of petrol and diesel in India declined while the global prices were surging.
The Union Minister said this while participating in a Ministerial panel discussion titled ‘‘Ensuring energy security for nations and industry in a VUCA world” at India Energy Week 2024 along with Saad Sherida Al Kaabi, Energy Affairs, Cabinet Minister, Qatar, Vickram Bharat, Minister of Natural Resources Republic of Guyana and OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais.
VUCA stands for volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. It describes the situation of constant, unpredictable change that is now the norm in certain industries and areas of the business world, the Minister explained.
Referring to the global energy production and supply situation Mr. Puri said that the challenge was to make sure transition was done in an orderly manner.
He said during the last two years India had expanded its sourcing base and steeply increased imports from Russia which helped in keeping fuels affordable.
“We have access to traditional fuel and making predictable transition to cleaner fuel. Balanced and realistic dialogue is needed and not vilification of fossil fuel,” he said. .
OPEC Secretary General Al Ghais observed that even as energy transition was vital, “energy transition can have multiple pathways. This is how we should look at energy transition. At OPEC we continue to invest, and we need hundreds of billions of dollars worth investment over the next 20 years.”
Al Ghais also emphasised the need for investment in fossil fuel production. “We need to invest as demand is likely to continue to grow,” he added.
According to Sherida Al Kaabi, Minister of State for Energy Affairs, Qatar renewable sources of energy would not completely solve the global energy needs. “It is not responsible to say we do not use fossil fuel. It is like humanity shooting itself in the foot,” he added.
(This writer is in Goa at the invitation of Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry)
