KOCHI: After a very long gap of over three years, Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has resumed the Kochi-Koottanad-Bengaluru-Mangaluru Pipeline Project Phase-II in Kerala. The pipes were welded together at Puthenchira village in Thrissur district on Wednesday. The IL&FS Engineering Services has recently won a Rs 173.13 crore pipeline laying contract from GAIL for the project.
“The entire 503 km pipeline project has been divided into four parts. Ernakulam and Thrissur form the first stretch in 90 km. We are hopeful of completing it soon since the 45 km stretch in Ernakulam district has been completed already. Work for other three parts, Kozhikode-Malappuram, Kannur and Kasaragod-Mangalore has also been re-started. We are hopeful of completing the project by September 2018,” said GAIL Chief Manager and Project Coordinator Tony Mathew.
He added that the land acquisition for the 400 km of pipeline has been completed in the state already and the remaining will be finished by December this year. Three years after commissioning, the landmark LNG Terminal of Petronet in the state remains an embodiment of wastage of huge investment. GAIL, the implementing agency of the pipeline project, was all set to restart pipe-laying in August, when the monsoon subsided. However, the work got delayed due to protests from the public over the compensation package. In phase-I of the project, pipe-laying was completed in 45 km in Ernakulam district. The project faced strong protests in Malappuram and Kozhikode districts.
LNG pipeline connects the industrial belt in Mangalore and Kerala. Being a cheaper and safer fuel, companies will benefit from the its easy availability. When the pipeline project comes to fruition the easy availability of fuel will decrease the production cost incurred by the companies.
“Using LNG will reduce the production cost drastically and this in turn will bring in profits. Once this happens we will be able to pay better salary and provide a better life to the employees here. India’s main strength is its man power. If we can provide better facilities to our employees, manpower output will increase. And the only way to do this is to reduce the production cost and LNG can do that for us,” said Saji V Mathew, Deputy General Manager, Sud Chemie, which has been using the fuel.
Not just Sud Chemie, but many more companies including Travancore Cochin Chemicals Limited, FACT, IRE and Hindustan Insecticides will benefit from the easy availability of LNG. Getting Kerala connected to India’s natural gas grid is of utmost importance. Grid connectivity makes the state’s share of natural gas cheap and this is enough to provide an impetus to its industrial, financial and business sectors.