Bangalore: Dutch petroleum giant Shell on Thursday urged the Indian government to speed up reforms in the oil and gas sector and de-control the prices of diesel to enable private petroleum companies a level playing field.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a function where the company anounced setting up of its third global hub for technology and innovation in the city, Yasmine Hilton, Chairman, Shell Companies in India, said, ‘We want a level playing field in oil and gas sector. The two products are heavily subsidised in India which has threatened the operations of companies like Shell. We urge the government to decontrol the diesel prices to start with’.
She said it has not been able for Shell to compete with state-owned oil companies as government provides huge subsidies to them. ‘We will soon meet the newly appointed Petroleum and natural gas minister M Veerappa Moily and request him to provide us with a better business climate,’ Dr Hilton said. Shell has a long history in India before it was taken over by the union government in 1976. It first set up shop in 1928 as Burmah-Shell Oil Storage and Distributing company in the country. (UNI)