BHUBANESWAR: Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday launched supply of Piped Natural Gas (PNG) project under the ‘Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga’ (PMUG) in Odisha.With the launching of the project, the Gas (India) Limited (GAIL) started supply of environment-friendly PNG to 255 houses in Nalco Nagar located at Chandrasekharpur area in the State Capital. The supply of PNG to a limited households was done ahead of its schedule in March 2018.
The PMUG with a project estimate of `11,700 crore will pass through Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal. The longest stretch of the project, which is about 769 km, will be built in Odisha. Stating that the pipeline will lead to industrial development of Eastern India, Pradhan said steps are being taken to commission Talcher fertiliser plant based on this gas based pipeline. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to lay the foundation stone for the project in November, he said.
The Union Minister said the natural gas pipeline will be constructed at an estimated investment of `4000 crore in Odisha and cover 13 districts - Bhadrak, Jajpur, Dhenkanal, Angul, Sundergarh, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Debagarh, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Khurda, Puri and Kendrapara.
Pradhan said the number of PNG connections in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack will be increased gradually in 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, he said.
Construction activities of CNG stations have already been taken up at Chandrasekharpur, Patia, Khandagiri and Tamando, and supply will be commenced at the earliest, he said. “The overall capital expenditure for Bhubaneswar and Cuttack CGD projects will be `1,700 crores, of which `400 crores will be spent in next three to five years,” the Minister said.