Focus on output maximisation, alternate fuel to reduce import defence for fuel: Dharmendra Pradhan

MUMBAI: India has changed its energy strategy to focus on increasing output and is looking at alternative fuels to reduce dependence on oil imports which is a pressure on the economy, oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan said.

Pradhan reiterated that the country was striving to become a gas-based economy, and was improving gas infrastructure to support this ambition. He said changing geopolitical conditions were creating anxiety and uncertainty and increasing fuel price volatility. This is a challenge for a price-sensitive market like India, he added.

“Import of fuel is a pressure on the economy. Managing volatility of price and dependence on imports is a challenge for India,” Pradhan said at the Times Network’s India Economic Conclave 2019.