The office of the Union comptroller and auditor general (CAG) has questioned why Reliance Industries (RIL) was allowed to charge a marketing margin on natural gas in dollar terms when that allowed to state-owned GAIL was approved in rupee terms.

The auditor recommended the petroleum ministry ensure the latter methodology be adopted for supply of natural gas from domestic sources for use in sectors where the government bears the subsidy burden.

Mumbai: Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (R-Jio) has outspent most telecom operators in India and may soon surpass Bharti Airtel Ltd even before the telecom unit of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has started commercial operations, illustrating the extent billionaire Mukesh Ambani is willing to go to tap demand for wireless data in the world’s second biggest smartphone market.

R-Jio, which will start operations later this year, has spent $14 billion so far, more than India’s third largest mobile phone operator Idea Cellular Ltd.

In what could be another face-off between Aam Aadmi Party and Reliance Industries, the Anti Corruption Branch of the Delhi government on Thursday issued a notice to top officials of RIL and its partner Niko Resources Ltd to join investigations next week in Krishna-Godavari Basin case.

The move marked the first improvement in the FIR registered in February last year when AAP had formed a government in Delhi for 49 days. The FIR also includes the names of former petroleum ministers M Veerappa Moily, Murli Deora, former director general of hydrocarbons V K Sibal and RIL chairperson Mukesh Ambani.

Oil exploration shares such as Reliance Industries and ONGC were trading marginally in an otherwise weak market after the government announced a policy for development of oil and gas discoveries.

There are three options to choose from. The first is an option to relinquish the block. Another is to develop the discovery, after conducting a Drill Stem Test (DST); if this is not done on time, half the DST cost will be disallowed. And, even if done on time, the cost recovery is to be limited to $15 million (Rs 94.8 crore).

Falling cash reserves and increasing debt are expected to reduce treasury income for Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) in the current fiscal year as the company will have less cash to invest in instruments such as mutual funds and government bonds, among others.

RIL, which is in the midst of its biggest capital expenditure cycle, is investing up to $24 billion over a five-year period since fiscal 2013 across businesses ranging from refining, petrochemicals and fourth-generation telecom services.

Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd (ONGC) has quietly junked an agreement to use the existing infrastructure of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) in the Krishna-Godavari basin in its own neighbouring field after ties between the two companies turned sour.

The move will lead to higher capital expenditure for ONGC, which will have to set up its own infrastructure from scratch, and potential loss of revenue for RIL, which could have let out its idle equipment to ONGC for a fee.

Stating that Reliance Industries (RIL) has no locus standi to raise dispute on the ONGC’s performance, the PSU explorer on Wednesday accused the firm of draining gas from its reservoirs at 98/2KG Basin block through the latter’s wells. RIL operates the adjacent block 98/3 KG Basin.

ONGC told the Delhi High Court that it wants to secure its rights, which are being jeopardised by continuous production activity from the four wells of RIL to its detriment. ONGC had earlier accused RIL of drawing natural gas worth an estimated Rs 30,000 crore from its fields adjacent to the latter’s KG-D6 block.

Reliance Industries (RIL) has so far committed Rs 88,000 crore ($14 billion) of capital to its telecom business, sources told FE. This does not include the Rs 10,077.53 crore the telecom subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm, will spend for its 800-MHz and 1,800- MHz spectrum won in the recently held auctions.

An Kotak Institutional Equities report dated April 20, notes that Reliance Jio has so far deployed about Rs 52,400 crore of capital as of March 31, against Rs 37,800 crore, as of March 31, 2014. Reliance Jio holds broadband wireless access spectrum in all the 22 telecom circles and has made significant progress in rolling out its 4G business, including physical network infrastructure, systems and processes, sales and distribution network.

Reliance Industries were trading lower by 1% at Rs 922 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in early morning trade on profit bookings.

The stock has rallied 16.5% from its 52-week low of Rs 796 touched on March 30, 2015, compared with 1.3% rise in the CNX Nifty till yesterday.

MUMBAI: Riding on superior refinery margins, Reliance Industries (RIL) regained its position as India's most profitable firm on Friday. It reported an 8.5% jump in its FY15 fourth quarter net profit to Rs 6,381 crore (over $1 billion) on a consolidated basis, compared to the same period a year ago. TCS had displaced RIL from the numero uno position in Q3 as RIL profits fell for the first time in two years to Rs 5,256 crore.

This effectively means that RIL profits have grown over 21% over the last quarter. This jump came even as its earnings from the petrochemicals business fell while the domestic gas business continued to disappoint.

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