Hiranandani, GAIL plan LNG terminals in BENGAL

07 Oct 2011  PETROLEUM BAZAAR   It may well turn out to be a fresh lease of life for West Bengal industrial sector and chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s efforts to wipe off her anti-industry image, which are still haunted by the ghost of Singur issue. Two companies —private sector major Hiranandani Group and state-run Gas Authority of India (GAIL) — are looking to set up liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals in the state, eyeing the market in the Haldia industrial belt. Though both the companies are tightlipped about the size of the terminals, for a state which is yet to come out of the Tata Nano plant shut down in Singur the development is a boon as it may see thousands of crores of investment. Confirming the development, Darshan Hiranandani, director of Hindustan Electricity Generation, a group company, said, “Our group is genuinely keen on setting up an LNG terminal in West Bengal. However, the location is yet to be decided. We are conducting some advance studies regarding this and expects it to be ready in another 60 days.” A top official from GAIL too confirmed that “there is a plan to set up a terminal near Haldia” but did not divulge further details. The Mumbai-based Hiranandani Group is already planning to set up an 8 million tonne terminal at Dighi port in Maharashtra for captive use at its upcoming power plants and to cater to consumers in the power and fertiliser industry. According to sources, a minimum 5 MT terminal may cost somewhere around $1 billion as Petronet is reportedly planning a terminal with the same size in east with a similar investment, which means West Bengal is set to see a huge investment. However, what may work against Haldia is the draft issues. “We are looking at the region based on Haldia fertiliser market and city gas distribution project. But draft issues is a major problem for the region. We cannot set up a terminal with 6 metre draft, moreover the delta is very silted and cyclone prone. We are looking whether it is possible to overcome these hurdles for our LNG terminal in eastern coast.”Even the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board is keen on the region. “A lot of firms are interested in setting up LNG terminals in the eastern coast. Even after draft issues, a number of them are keen on Haldia too. They are also eyeing the gas pipelines which are set to come up in the region.” While a Reliance firm is planning a pipeline from Kakinada to Haldia, GAIL will set up Rs 7,600-crore pipeline from Jagdishpur to Halida pipeline. Not just GAIL and Hiranandani, a number of other firms are too keen on the Eastern Coast. While Petronet LNG may locate its third terminal in the country at at Dhamra in Orissa, state-run Indian Oil Corporation is reportedly mulling options to set up a 5MT terminal in east. This is mainly to meet the natural gas requirement for IOC’s refineries in Haldia, Paradeep and Barauni. But for a state like West Bengal, which is trying to get over the Singur anti-industry image, the LNG terminals and gas pipelines are going to lit up fresh hopes. Courtesy: BS