Suit filed to ‘help’ the Centre: Cairn India

Lamenting that decision making in India could have been quicker, mining baron Anil Agarwal has said his company Cairn India filed a suit against government to “help” latter decide on price and tenure of Rajasthan oilfield faster.

Cairn India, a unit of Agarwal-led Vedanta Group, had in December filed a suit in Delhi High Court seeking direction to government to extend its contract for the prolific Barmer oil and gas block in Rajasthan as well as give a better price for crude oil produced from the block. “We have gone (to Court) to help the government... it can help them decide faster,” he said. Cairn sells Rajasthan crude oil at a discount of 25 per cent to the widely traded Brent crude oil. With 80 per cent of the revenue generated from oil sale going to the government by way of taxes, royalty, cess and profit petroleum, international crude oil prices will help it more, he said.

“We are ready to give (oil) to the government at whatever price they fix. But when we supply to the private (refiners) we must be allowed international prices,” he said.

Explaining the rationale for going to the Court, he said, it is a “very genuine” demand and “we have been telling this to them (government) for the last two years” but no action has been taken. With global oil prices dipping to a decae low, 25 per cent discount is making things worse. “So we thought they are taking time to take a decision and so let’s go to the court,” he said.