India pledges to be global demand center at G20 Energy meet; Raises issue of reasonable oil pricing amid COVID
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New Delhi, April 11: Focussing on ways and means to ensure stable energy markets, which are affected due to demand reduction as result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing surplus production -related matters, India on Saturday participated on the G20 Extraordinary Energy Ministers virtual meeting. The meeting was called by Saudi Arabia, in its capacity as the G20 Presidency, and chaired by Saudi Arabia Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz.
Dharmendra Pradhan at the conference reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for G20 taking a human-centric approach for overcoming challenging hardships, especially for the vulnerable. "The Minister highlighted the decision under the aegis of the Ujjwala scheme, to provide 80.3 million poor families free LPG cylinders, as part of a 23 billion dollars relief package. He emphasized that India was, and will continue to be, the global energy demand centre. He also highlighted Government of India’s efforts to fill in our Strategic Petroleum Reserves", the statement read.
Reiterated to my counterparts at the #G20 Energy Ministers Summit Hon. PM @narendramodi’s appeal of not letting a purely economic agenda define globalization.
— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) April 10, 2020
Our sheer determination will help us emerge victorious against this invisible enemy. pic.twitter.com/427gFpORxC
In terms of the ongoing energy market fluctuations, the Minister further stated that India has always advocated for a stable oil market, which is reasonable for producers and affordable for consumers. He appreciated the collective efforts of OPEC and OPEC-plus countries to balance the supply-side factors which is imperative for long-term sustainability. He has, however, urged that oil prices should be targeted to affordable levels to allow for a consumption-led demand recovery.
"India raised 2 issues-less volatility of oil price is good for all stakeholders and price should be reasonable and affordable to producing and consuming countries. I have assured the global leadership that India will continue to be the global demand center", Pradhan said while takking to media immediately after the meet.
The G20 is made up of 19 countries and the European Union. The 19 countries are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the UK and the US. While the meeting was attended by Energy Ministers of these countries, guest countries and heads of international organizations including OPEC, IEA and IEF said the meeting will be adopting a Joint Statement, which inter alia, proposes to establish a Task Force to advise the G20 Energy Ministers on the next steps, and agreed to remain engaged in the coming days.
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