Piped Natural Gas supply to start in capital tomorrow

Bhubaneswar: Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will on Friday launch Piped Natural Gas (PNG) supply for residents of Bhubaneswar.

GAIL (India) Limited will commence supply of environment-friendly PNG in 255 houses at NALCO Nagar in the first phase, GAIL Director (Projects) Ashutosh Karnatak said at a press conference here.

GAIL (India) Limited is India’s No. 1 Integrated Natural Gas company with a market share of over 75% in Natural Gas transmission. With over 11,000 Kms of Natural gas network, GAIL supplies India’s fuel requirements across sectors like Power, Fertilizer, Industrial, Automotive and even Household consumers. Apart from natural gas transmission, distribution and processing, the Company has diversified business interests in Petrochemicals, LPG transmission, City gas projects and Exploration and Production activities. The company is committed to expand its current network to 18,000 km within 5 years.​

City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack are being taken up along with similar initiatives in the Jagdishpur – Haldia and Bokaro – Dhamra Natural Gas Pipeline (JHBDPL), popularly known as ‘Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga’. In Odisha, the Natural Gas Pipeline will be constructed at an estimated investment of Rs 4,000 crores and have a length of about 769 km covering 13 districts, i.e., Bhadrak, Jajpur, Dhenkanal, Angul, Sundergarh, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Debagarh, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Khordha, Puri and Kendrapara & will connect major industrial clusters of Khurdha, Jharsuguda, Rourkela, Sambalpur, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Angul, Dhenkanal, Kalinganagar, Jajpur and Paradip.

In March while launching construction activities of CGD project Pradhan had said PNG supply in NALCO Nagar would commence by March 2018 on a pilot basis. However, GAIL took up the project on a war-footing and will commence supply of natural gas almost six months before the deadline, Dr Karnatak said.

GAIL also plans to provide PNG connections in the near future to adjacent Jeevan Bima Colony and Maitri Vihar Colony covering a total of 1,000 houses. Assessment is also being carried out for PNG supply to leading hotels, hospitals and industrial units of the city, Karnatak said.

Describing PNG as a “Happy Fuel”, Karnatak said it is not just eco-friendly, but is one of the most convenient and safe fuels. Further, it will also help in reduction of fuel imports. There are no hassles of booking and storing cylinders as gas is continuously supplied through pipes and payment is done after usage on the basis of meter reading. Moreover, in the unlikely incident of leakage, the gas quickly rises and disperses in the atmosphere without causing damage, he said. “It is giving happiness to every user,” he quipped.

Initially, natural gas will reach Bhubaneswar in special containers called “cascades”, which will be transported by road from Vijaywada in Andhra Pradesh. Later, natural gas will be supplied through the Jagdishpur – Haldia and Bokaro – Dhamra Natural Gas Pipeline (JHBDPL). The pipeline is presently under construction and likely to be completed by 2019.

The commencement of supply of natural gas is an important step towards the fulfillment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement to develop a gas-based economy and linking eastern India to the country’s natural gas grid through the ‘Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga’, which will pass through five states, viz., Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal. The longest stretch of the project – 769 kms – will be built in Odisha.

In Bhubaneshwar and Cuttack, the number of PNG connections will be gradually ramped up in the next three to five years. Moreover, 25 CNG stations will be commissioned in the twin cities to supply compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel to vehicles, a press release said.

In Bhubaneswar, construction activities of CNG stations have already been taken up at Chandrasekharpur, Patia, Khandagiri and Tamando, and supply will be commenced at the earliest, it said.

The overall capital expenditure for the Bhubaneswar and Cuttack CGD projects will be Rs. 1,700 crores, of which Rs 400 crores will be spent in the next three to five years, the release added.