PM Modi Inaugurates Phase One of East India Pipe
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi February 17 inaugurated the first phase of the ambitious Jagdishpur – Haldia & Bokaro – Dhamra Natural Gas Pipeline Project (JHBDPL) in east Indian city of Patna, Gail, which is building the pipeline, said the same day.
The foundation stone of Phase 1 of the pipeline had been laid by Modi in July 2015 in Patna and the section from Phulpur - Dobhi – Barauni with spurlines to Patna and Varanasi of length 585 km has been completed, Gail said. This section passes covers nine districts in Bihar (415 km) and three districts in Uttar Pradesh (170 km). The districts covered in Bihar are Patna, Kaimur, Rohtas, Aurangabad, Gaya, Nalanda, Lakhisarai, Begusarai and Sheikhupura.
The 2,650 km-long gas pipeline project, also known as Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga, will pass through the eastern Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal & Odisha. The pipeline is being further extended from Barauni to Guwahati in the northeastern state of Assam through a 729 km pipeline. The project is being executed at an investment of rupees 129.4bn ($1.8bn), which includes 40% capital grant from the government of India and the project is scheduled to be completed by 2020 in phases.
The natural gas pipeline will be crucial in reviving fertilizer units in Barauni, Sindri and Gorakhpur and also supply natural gas for houses and vehicles in Patna, Varanasi, Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Kolkata and other cities enroute the pipeline, Gail said.
Modi also inaugurated the city gas distribution (CGD) network in Patna under which piped natural gas (PNG) will be supplied to domestic customers and commercial establishments like hotels, restaurants and industries, while compressed natural gas (CNG) will be supplied for the transport sector through CNG stations.
Infrastructure has already been created for about 5,000 PNG households and initially, PNG supply will be started to staff quarters in BIT Mesra, Patna Campus near airport and two student hostels in the campus. Two CNG stations (one near Rukunpura, Beli Road and another near Patna Toll NH1, Bypass Road) were also started. The Patna CGD project is being executed with a planned expenditure of rupees 3.6bn over the next five years and overall rupees 12bn over 25 years, Gail said.
Gail has been authorized to lay CGD networks in major cities such as Patna, Varanasi, Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
India is working on increasing the share of gas in the overall energy mix to tackle the problem of air pollution. According to a Wood Mackenzie note published February 8, the CGD sector will drive the demand for natural gas in the south Asian nation.