Vedanta Group Chairman Anil Agarwal has called for a radical shift in India’s energy strategy, urging the government to move from “heavy regulation to facilitation” to unlock the nation’s untapped hydrocarbon potential.
Noted industrialist and Vedanta Group Chairman Anil Agarwal on Monday said that the world doesn’t want India to produce but only wants it to be a market. “The world doesn’t want India to produce. It only wants India to be a market. But only domestic production creates jobs, which is proven in other parts of the world. We must push back. We must fight to be self-sufficient. After all, this is a country which used to be import-dependent on food. And then became self-sufficient. It all happened because the government created a movement to make the country self-sufficient,” he said in a post on X.
India imports 90% of its oil, gas requirements
Stating that India is importing nearly 90 per cent of its oil and gas requirements, Agarwal said it is vulnerable to supply disruptions as it is surrounded by sea on three sides. “There is no option but to raise our domestic production. We are the world’s fastest-growing market for oil and gas. And our demand will keep growing for another 20 years at least,” he said.
Agarwal stressed that India possesses tremendous resources, estimated at 300 billion barrels of oil equivalent.
“More than 30 times Guyana’s potential. We also have amazing entrepreneurs – our businessmen, youngsters and startups. Across the world, in America, Middle East and Europe, 10% of experts in this industry are Indians. So, we have talent. What we need to do is exploration. That is the core of this business. Two decades ago, the US was dependent on hydrocarbon imports and vulnerable. They changed it by opening up exploration to entrepreneurs and making it lucrative for them. Even the backyards of homes and farms were explored. Everyone benefited,” Agarwal said.
India can produce oil at half the cost of imports
Agarwal is of the view that India can produce oil at half the cost of imports. However, he stressed that the country needs more exploration to unlock its full potential.
“Today, there are hardly 200 active licences in India when there should be 2,000. The industry and potential investors fear processes, notices, court cases and taking away the licenses. Even one court case or notice in the public domain catches like fire in the world,” he said.
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