1
00:00:04,319 --> 00:00:12,000
(Phone Ringing.)

2
00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:14,815
Manoj: <i>Haan</i> boss!
Niira: Manoj.
Manoj: Hmm!

3
00:00:14,815 --> 00:00:21,983
Niira: Manoj just explain the MOU. You are on speaker phone. Just explain the MOU.
Manoj: Hmm!

4
00:00:21,983 --> 00:00:25,568
Niira: The MOU had no price on it right?
Manoj: Yes.

5
00:00:25,568 --> 00:00:32,992
Niira: NTPC's price was determined by NTPC or NTPC... Explain the sequence of events.

6
00:00:32,992 --> 00:00:49,376
Manoj: The MOU says that the price of gas for the 28 MMSCMD - the terms of supply of gas for 28 MMSCMD should be no less favourable than NTPC terms.

7
00:00:49,376 --> 00:00:55,008
Niira: Ok.
Manoj: Yeah?
Niira: Who determined the NTPC price?

8
00:00:55,008 --> 00:01:04,992
Manoj: The NTPC price was a global bid that was called for by NTPC, and we had proposed the price of 2.34.

9
00:01:04,992 --> 00:01:07,296
Niira: We had proposed the price of 2.34?

10
00:01:07,296 --> 00:01:16,512
Manoj: Yes. Post which there was a LOI that was issued to us confirming that they would like to appoint us as the supplier of gas.

11
00:01:16,512 --> 00:01:24,192
Manoj: When the LOI went into a formal agreement, the draft of the agreement had a clause.

12
00:01:24,192 --> 00:01:32,384
Niira: Uh huh! 
Manoj: Which said that we are liable for unlimited liabilities in case of non supply of gas.

13
00:01:32,384 --> 00:01:45,952
Niira: Uh huh!
Manoj: Therefore we said that we will not sign such an agreement because we can't be open to paying unlimited liabilities, you should have a cap on the liabilities.

14
00:01:45,952 --> 00:01:54,912
Niira: Right. So the price of...
Manoj: Then NTPC drags us to court saying that we are not honouring an agreement. We said we have not signed an agreement.

15
00:01:54,912 --> 00:02:02,592
Manoj: They said that an LOI is as good as an agreement, therefore you are liable to supply the gas at 2.34.

16
00:02:02,592 --> 00:02:06,176
Niira: Uhuh!
Manoj: That is what is being fought in the courts today.

17
00:02:06,176 --> 00:02:15,391
Manoj: However our claim has been, in the draft agreement which was sent by NTPC to us, there was a clause which said that subject to government approval.

18
00:02:15,391 --> 00:02:21,279
Manoj: Which is what we replicated in the RNRL DSPA also.

19
00:02:21,279 --> 00:02:27,935
Niira: That also said subject to government approval, right?
Manoj: Yeah, because the same agreement was replicated for RNRL.

20
00:02:27,935 --> 00:02:31,263
Niira: And the High court chief justice has ignored that, is it?

21
00:02:31,263 --> 00:02:47,647
Manoj: No, he has said that there is no clause in the production sharing contract with the government which restricts us from selling gas at a lower price than what the government approved price is.

22
00:02:47,647 --> 00:02:53,279
Niira: Is that true?
Manoj: That is what the judge's understanding of the case is.

23
00:02:53,279 --> 00:03:04,543
Manoj: See, the judge is just relying on the fact that when he asked Harish Salve, do you make profits at 2.34, Harish Salve said, I do make profits at 2.34.

24
00:03:04,543 --> 00:03:20,671
Niira: Hmm!
Manoj: See the point is at any price of the gas I make profit because these production sharing contract says that I first... I will have to recover all my investments...

25
00:03:20,671 --> 00:03:31,935
Niira: Yeah!
Manoj: Till then only 10% of the revenue goes to the government. Till I recover two and a half times my investments 28% goes to the government.

26
00:03:31,935 --> 00:03:39,615
Manoj: Post that 85% goes to the government. So at any price, I will still make profit over a period of time.

27
00:03:40,127 --> 00:03:54,975
Niira: Uh huh!
Manoj: Now the judge obviously has not understood this and has gone by the stated submission of Harish Salve saying that I make profit at 2.34. Even at one cent I may make profit.

28
00:03:54,975 --> 00:04:05,983
Niira: Uhuh! Right. Now tell me one thing Manoj, given that the NTPC outcome is still pending and given that it was subject to government approval.

29
00:04:05,983 --> 00:04:10,847
Manoj: Hmm!
Niira: What is the position as far as NTPC is concerned?

30
00:04:10,847 --> 00:04:17,247
Manoj: NTPC, we are still in court. The case that is being fought is for unlimited and limited liabilities.

31
00:04:17,247 --> 00:04:28,768
Niira: Uh huh!
Manoj: And we have now... And we actually want to now... You know we have taken a position which says that, you know, everything is subject to government approval.

32
00:04:28,768 --> 00:04:36,191
Manoj: So therefore NTPC also the price has to be 4.2 since it is subject to government approval.

33
00:04:36,191 --> 00:04:39,264
Niira: Uh huh!
Manoj: So that is where we are.

34
00:04:39,264 --> 00:04:42,079
Niira: No the PSC what you are saying...
Manoj: Hmm!

35
00:04:42,079 --> 00:04:48,223
Niira: In the case does it say... Where he says that it doesn't say you have to take government approval, does it say so?

36
00:04:48,223 --> 00:04:59,231
Manoj: The PSC actually has got three clauses. 21.6.1, 21.6.2, 21.6.3. 
Niira: Uh huh!

37
00:04:59,231 --> 00:05:06,911
Manoj: What was argued time and again is that, our version is that all three require government approval.

38
00:05:06,911 --> 00:05:17,407
Manoj: Their version is that we are allowed to... We have allowed the freedom of marketing gas and therefore what the government share is that will be valued at 4.2.

39
00:05:17,407 --> 00:05:23,552
Manoj: We are free to sell the gas at whatever the prices, that we agree to with our customers.

40
00:05:23,552 --> 00:05:30,463
Niira: That is their...
Manoj: Where as...That is their position. Our position is that there is no difference between value and price. Valuation and price.

41
00:05:30,463 --> 00:05:37,888
Manoj: All sale of gas has to be at 4.2. 
Niira: Right.

42
00:05:37,888 --> 00:05:44,031
Manoj: Hmm!
Niira: Did you manage to speak to Raja after that last night?

43
00:05:44,031 --> 00:05:54,272
Manoj: No, no. I mean I briefly spoke to him to confirm whether I can issue that statement or whether I need to take any further approval. He said, no, no. You issue the statement, that's it.

44
00:05:54,272 --> 00:06:00,928
Niira: The MOU that had been between Mukesh and Anil.
Manoj: Hmm!

45
00:06:00,928 --> 00:06:13,216
Niira: Did that have subject to government approval?
Manoj: It had on NTPC terms. It did not say... MOU... One minute.

46
00:06:13,216 --> 00:06:17,567
Niira: And it didn't say 2.34 either?
Manoj: No it didn't say 2.34.

47
00:06:22,432 --> 00:06:29,600
Niira: Is RIL and NTPC fighting on price?
Manoj: No their case is on unlimited and limited liability.

48
00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:41,376
Niira: Then RIL has accepted 2.34 right? 
Manoj: That is RIL's price only. It was a price that RIL submitted in a global bid.

49
00:06:41,376 --> 00:06:48,520
Niira: Uh huh! Had they officially retracted that price Manoj?

50
00:06:48,520 --> 00:06:48,520
Manoj: No they have not officially retracted that price. I don't think that they have officially retracted that price.
(Tape ends)

