ONGC may suffer over Rs 3,000 cr loss on gas sales Demands hike in fuel price; Ministry maintains Richa Mishra [New Delhi March 16 ‘With the Government to decide onrasng the et of macral gas cold admin: istered price, ONGC is likely to suffer a loss of over Rs 3,000 crore during the cur- rent fiscal. Itsuffered alossof Rs 2,140 crore in 2007-08 for gelling nerural gas a adie i price. ONGC has demanded a hike to’ 84/million British thermal units (mB) from stheeurrent$2.1/mBqu.Atthe ‘prevailing price of $2.1/mBtu (eon plas return. om apt forthe produce it fell fom felés given toiton somination basi, the compa: 2yiincuriog negative mar- hsm guess, ‘ONCE. sell roughly 47 niin standard cubic metre ay Gmscnd) of gas under APM thats 0 percencofthe eesiproduces Hoping that. the Govern pertifondeeteonie the fel price, aco “al told Business Line that “here potential for ‘upside revision of APM rie. To susan fture tne [om gmuamampreot Sambi required “The Petroleum Ministry, an the other hand, fas been ‘maintaining that the time isthe ‘ONGC has demanded a bike to $4/milion Betis ‘thermal units (Btu) from the current $2./mBtu, At the prevailing price of ‘SZ i/metu it is incurring negative margls on gas sales. sill not ce to raise the price and there is = huge lefcit in the country. “Differentiated prices can be od for specie subs. sectors, however, such nee in run may be detri- mental as it constraints the ‘low of investment into the sector," said Mr Gokul Chau- dri, Partner, BMR Associates. “Byery year a. significant part of India's demend for fs remains unmet end the national oil companies lose a sizeable amount of revenue by selling gas at lower than market price” he said, adé- ing that “the time was right to do away with APM pricing”, ‘On a more cautious note, Mr Alay Arora, Partner = avai “Transaction Advisory Servic- 3, Ernst & Young. std, "To- ay, there is anced for a mix of market- determined price ime's not right nd subsided pice. “ao the fog'ram the gas ah would ally be iven by oe ceonenties of abject fo gue eae) wile ie would largely bea function of the pricing of.the substitutes like raphe ‘fuel oil and so mo