9NOVEMBER 2024INDIAN RAILWAYS USE CAPEX TO MODERNIZE VANDE BHARAT TRAINSINDIA'S CRUDE OIL REFINING CAPACITY ESTIMATED TO INCREASE BY 52 MMTPAFor the full fiscal year, Indian Railways has set a capex target of 2.65 lakh crore, expecting 80,000 crore from passenger revenues and 1.80 lakh crore from freight revenues. The 2024-25 budget has adjusted allocations for various projects, including modernizing Vande Bharat trains, addressing congestion, and enhancing energy, cement, and port connectivity.By the end of October, Indian Railways has utilized 61 percent of its budgeted capital expenditure (capex) for the current fiscal year, amounting to 1.63 lakh crore. The national transporter has seen an upswing in earnings, with 1.02 lakh crore from freight and 46,374.5 crore from passengers, contributing to a 6.1 percent increase in total revenue, which reached 1.49 lakh crore.On the expenditure side, revenue expenditure for the fiscal stood at 1.35 lakh crore till October-end, primarily covering staff salaries, pensions, and fuel costs. The Railways anticipates spending 1.18 lakh crore on staff costs, 65,000 crore on pensions, 10,817.34 crore on diesel, and 23,744.94 crore on electricity in fiscal 2024-25. Additionally, it will pay 21,806.47 crore in lease charges to the Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC).Passenger traffic has also shown significant growth, with a 5.94 percent increase in unreserved passengers, crossing 3.85 billion passengers this fiscal, and a 6.42 percent rise in reserved passengers, reaching 501.12 million. Indian Railways is aiming to carry 7.47 billion passengers for the entire fiscal year, up from 6.84 billion in the previous year. On Nov 12, he announced that India is making significant strides in its biofuel blending efforts and is set to surpass the 20 percent blending target set for 2030, achieving this milestone five years ahead of schedule. The current biofuel blending rate has already reached 16.9 perecnt, marking rapid progress in the initiative.Puri highlighted that the biofuel initiative has resulted in savings of 91,000 crore in oil import bills while also boosting the agriculture sector. He made these remarks during the inauguration of ETM-2024 (Energy Technology Meet) in Bengaluru.Indian Oil chairman V Satish Kumar also discussed the future of the energy industry, stressing the importance of integrating green energy solutions into refining processes. He stated that cutting-edge technologies and resource optimization would contribute to building a resilient and environmentally responsible energy industry.ETM-2024, a three-day event, has gathered around 1,300 delegates from India and overseas, including industry experts, academics, R&D scientists, and professionals from the hydrocarbon sector. The event will feature technical sessions on renewable energy integration, hydrogen production, waste-to-energy innovation, and strategies for achieving carbon neutrality. The Union Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri shared that India has the capacity to process over 250 types of crude oil, and the country's refining capacity is projected to grow from 258 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) to 310 MMTPA. This expansion, along with petrochemical integration, positions India for a flexible and efficient energy transition.
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