KOCHI: There’s some good news for south India, which has hitherto been left out from the natural gas network for want of pipelines. Petronet LNG, which owns the only LNG terminal in south India, will soon start transporting LNG to Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL) via road. This is for the first time such massive offloading of LNG through trucks happens in this part of the country.
“We will start supplying LNG using trucks with cryogenic cylinder to MRPL starting June this year. Since the LNG pipeline connecting Kochi terminal with Mangaluru and Bengaluru will be ready only by the second half of 2018, this is the only available option. Till then we will be able to provide gas via road,” said a Kochi Petronet LNG official.
This will benefit chemical and fertiliser companies including Kudremukh Iron Ore Company, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals , BASF, Total Oil India, the proposed Cheemeni power project in Kasargod district of Kerala, and the industrial clusters in Coimbatore.
The major benefit offered by switching to LNG is that the fuel is about 40 per cent cheaper than the existing ones such as diesel, naphtha and furnace and it is cleaner, too. With the customs duty cut by half to 2.5 per cent in the Budget, the rate is likely to fall further. Once the pipeline is ready, these companies will be able to get cheaper domestic gas.
The initial deadline for completion of the project was June 2015. Recently, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board revised the deadline for laying Kochi-Koottanad-Bengaluru-Mangaluru natural gas pipeline network to February 2019.
“Transporting the fuel through road is a welcome step. As of now, only 0.25 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of the 5 mtpa capacity LNG terminal is being utilised. When the transportation using trucks starts, the capacity utilisation will be increased to 1.25 mtpa. This mode can be used till the LNG pipeline is in place to supply the fuel to companies in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu,” A V Ramana, chairman in-charge, Cochin Port Trust told Express. More capacity utilisation means more revenue for the port as well, he said.
Currently, Petronet LNG is supplying natural gas under the brand name Taral Gas to Kerala Minerals and Metals Limited and Hindustan Latex Limited using trucks.
“Transportation of LNG using trucks can be a viable option in areas where natural gas infrastructure is not in place. Another advantage is that fertiliser companies and power plants en-route to MRPL can also utilise the fuel. They only need to construct a storage and gasification facility,” said Tony Mathew, chief manager and project coordinator at GAIL.