Reliance Industries, which faces an oil ministry missive against selling ‘‘underpriced’’ gas to Anil Ambani’s company, is in no hurry to sort out the issue with the ministry. This increases the prospects for further delay in commissioning of India’s largest power project in Dadri.

Sources in India’s largest corporate RIL say they would rather wait for the government to appoint the committee and prepare a report than seek clarifications on government’s Tuesday statement. RIL sources, seeking anonymity, said the deal with Anil Ambani is the first of its kind. In other gas agreements, they add, public sector units were signing the agreements on behalf of the government.

Hence, sources say, this is for the first time any gas sale agreement has been signed between two private companies with government getting a part of profits as royalty.

On Wednesday, the oil ministry had said that it will set up a committee to frame regulations on transparent guidelines for gas valuation. It said the gas agreement between the two brothers was not signed under ‘‘arms length basis’’ and was underpriced.

As part of a settlement between the promoters of the Reliance group, Mukesh Ambani-owned RIL had agreed to sell gas to Anil Ambani’s Reliance Natural Resources Ltd at a price of $3.18 mbtu. The government, which gets its share of profits from gas sale, says it will lose revenue if the gas is sold at lower price to the Anil company.

The Anil Ambani camp, on the other hand, says the agreed gas price cannot be called discounted as there is no precedent of long-term benchmark contracts available in India.

... contd.