The government has raised the ceiling price for natural gas produced from difficult fields to $9.89 per million British thermal units for the six months beginning October 1.

The new ceiling, up from $8.90, applies to gas from deepwater, ultra-deepwater and high-pressure, high-temperature discoveries, according to a notification by the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell. It will remain in force until March 31, 2027.

The change will benefit producers developing technically challenging offshore resources, such as the Reliance Industries-BP KG-D6 block in the Krishna-Godavari basin. Gas from such fields has marketing and pricing freedom but remains subject to a government-notified ceiling.

For gas from the legacy fields of ONGC and Oil India, the administered price mechanism price for October was notified at $11.22 per MMBtu, but actual realisation stays capped at $7 per MMBtu.

Gas from new wells in their nomination blocks can get a 10 percent premium, taking the effective price up to $7.70 per MMBtu.