RS clears Bill to ease oil exploration

Rajya Sabha Approves Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill, 2024

• The Rajya Sabha passed a Bill aimed at delinking petroleum operations from mining, clarifying petroleum lease grants and extensions, and introducing a new mechanism for the resolution of disputes for the exploration and production sector.
• The Bill replaces all the existing laws between 1948 and 1969 by introducing the concept of ‘petroleum lease’ which is legally differentiated from the mining lease.
• The Bill must be passed in the Lok Sabha to come into effect.
• The Bill introduces the concept ‘Mineral Oils‘, which groups together a broad spectrum of mineral oils, from shale oil and gas hydrates to coal bed methane.