GAIL completes first phase of Kochi LNG terminal pipeline

NEW DELHI: State-owned GAIL India Ltd has completed the first phase of pipeline that will connect the upcoming LNG import facility at Kochi to consumers in Kerala.

"Mechanical completion (of 40-km Phase-1) done and ready for gas intake subject to availability of gas from Petronet LNG Ltd," Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Panabaaka Lakshmi said in written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.

Petronet is building 5 million tonne per annum liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at Kochi in Kerala. The facility is likely to be completed in first quarter of 2013 after dredging of the navigational port is done.

The Phase-I of the piepline will connect the Kochi terminal to Fertilizer and Chemicals Travancore's (FACT) plant, Lakshmi said.

The 879-km Phase-II pipeline to Mangalore and Bengaluru in Karnataka is under implementation and "the actual physical progress of the project is 64.1 per cent", she added.

"Phase-II of pipeline is passing through the states of Kerala (501 km), Tamil Nadu (312 km) and Karnataka (66 km)," she said. "As per (GAIL's) Board approval, schedule date of completion of the project is December 2012 but the project has got delayed."

GAIL, Lakshmi said, acquired Right of Use (ROU) in land from land owners/farmers to lay the pipeline and compensation was paid as per Petroleum & Mineral Pipelines (Acquisition of Right of User in Land) Act, 1962.

"GAIL has completed the process of acquiring ROU but is unable to handover RoU to the contractors due to severe resistance from land owners/farmers," she added.