India's petroleum products will be out of the control of foreign powers, the government will buy 112 new tankers by investing $ 10 billion.

India now seems to be getting more serious about its energy security. Till now, India was dependent on foreign tankers for the supply of crude oil, but now preparations have been made to change this story. The government intends that India should have its own oil tanker fleet, which is controlled and manufactured by India.

Why was there a dependence on foreign tankers?

Till now, India's government oil companies have mostly been using tankers rented from foreign companies. Many of these ships are old and expensive too. This not only makes logistics expensive, but India also loses strategic control.

Big plan to buy 112 new tankers

Now the government is going to take a big step. India will buy a total of 112 new crude oil tankers. This plan is worth about Rs 85,000 crore (about $ 10 billion) and will be implemented by 2040. The project will start with the purchase of 79 ships, out of which 30 will be medium range carriers.

The first order may come this month

According to government sources, the first order can be issued by the end of this month, which will include the purchase of 10 tankers. This will be the first part of this long term plan.

Big opportunity for 'Make in India'

The special thing about this scheme is that these tankers will be manufactured only in India. Even if there is a partnership with a foreign company in this, the condition is that the construction should be done in India only. This will give a tremendous boost to the country's shipbuilding industry and will also create local employment opportunities.

Why is India buying tankers?

Even though the world is now moving towards clean energy, India's energy needs are increasing rapidly. The demand for petroleum products in the country is constantly increasing, whether it is for domestic use or for export. This is the reason why India is working on a plan to increase its refining capacity from 250 million tonnes to 450 million tonnes by 2030.

The number of indigenous tankers will increase

At present, out of all the oil tankers that India has, only 5 percent of them are made in India. The government's target is to increase this figure to 7 percent by 2030 and to make it 69 percent by 2047, which is linked to India's vision of becoming a developed nation.

Now a new India will be built

This step of the government will not only give logistical and strategic strength to India, but it will be a solid and big step towards the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' campaign. Now the oil will come from there, but the tanker and control will be completely indigenous.