JUNE 20239India has already reached 172 GW of renewable energy capacity, and another 129 MW is being implemented. During a review meeting with States/UTs on the development of renewable energy schemes and capacities in the national capital, New & Renewable Energy Secretary B S Bhalla mentioned the capacity. The objective of 500 GW from non-fossil fuels would require anadditional 200 GW of installed capacity, which would leave the total installed capacity at 301 GW. The meeting was presided over by Bhagwanth Khuba, Union Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy, Chemicals, and Fertilisers.Participants in the review meeting included Principal Secretaries (Energy)/Secretaries of Power, New & Renewable Energy from States/UTs. Bhalla underlined at the meeting that states play a crucial role in facilitating the establishment of renewable energy facilities by providing infrastructure.Khuba emphasised that the energy industry has a significant impact on how India would develop in the future. Together, the Ministries of Power and New & Renewable Energy are engaged on a number of projects, including expanding transmission capacity. At the meeting, the National Green Hydrogen Mission and the success of other schemes, such as rooftop solar, were examined. The oil ministry is drafting a proposal to combine the two publicly traded subsidiaries of Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL). When ONGC bought HPCL from the government five years ago, the notion of a merger between MRPL and HPCL was discussed, but little progress was achieved. According to the aforementioned sources, the ministry is currently pressing for the merger, which will probably involve a share exchange.They claimed that there would be no financial outlay and that HPCL would most likely issue new shares to MRPL owners as part of the merger. The ONGC and HPCL are MRPL's promoters. The public owns 11.42 percent of MRPL, followed by HPCL at 16.96 percent and ONGC at 71.63 percent. Through the acquisition, ONGC's present 54.9 percent holding in HPCL will be dramatically increased, lowering the free float. The oil ministry will probably ask the cabinet for approval of the proposed combination of HPCL and MRPL. ONGC, HPCL, MRPL, the oil ministry, and ONGC all declined to comment. The HPCL-MRPL combination might need to wait until next year, according to one individual, who argued that the rule calls for a minimum two-year buffer between any two mergers a business undertakes. Last year, MRPL completed the merger of its subsidiary, OMPL, with itself. TOP STORIESINDIA HAS 172 GW RENEWABLE ENERGY CAPACITYOIL MINISTRY WORKING ON PROPOSAL TO MERGE MRPL WITH HPCL
< Page 8 | Page 10 >