The Hindu : 'We have enough oil reserves'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 22, 2002

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'We have enough oil reserves'

By Mahesh Vijapurkar

MUMBAI MAY 21. The country has enough strategic oil reserves to "meet any eventuality'' and supplies would be uninterrupted in the event of a war with Pakistan, the Petroleum and Gas Minister, Ram Naik, said. "It is already a war-like situation,'' he told correspondents here today.

``Our strategic resources are enough for any eventuality,'' he said. When asked as to how long can it last in an adverse situation, he said, "There will be no difficulties.''

Not only vehicles — civilian and defence related — have to ply on the road, Mr. Naik said, but also "the requirement of oil for the automatic weapons have to be ensured; it is very important to the defence forces.''

Given the "more sensitive and large scale'' placing of India's oil and gas assets at sea, from Kutch to Kerala and locations in the Cauvery and Godavari basins, of which some extend to the sea, Mr. Naik said, "additional security measures have been taken''.

The Coast Guard, which normally dealt with the security of these assets, has been brought under the operational command of the Navy.

The Minister pointed to the construction, nine months ago, of an oil depot at Leh — highest in the world — after "some damage to the one at Kargil which we, of course, repaired very quickly.

''This could "supply aviation turbine fuel to the Indian Air Force. This was not possible earlier."

India is to offer for exploration and production 27 new blocks to step up the country's oil and gas requirements, in addition to the 47 such blocks already given in the past two years.

Mr. Naik will travel between May-end and early June to the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Singapore and Malaysia to generate enthusiasm in these blocks.

The pace of offer of the new blocks is quicker than what had happened ten years earlier, when only 22 blocks were offered.

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