ONGC gas unit closure hits user firms

Natural gas supplies to private sector units in Hazira and along the Hazira-Bijapur-Jagdishpur (HBJ) gas pipeline have been turned off with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) shutting down of one of its platforms in the Bassein gas field.

The fortnight-long shutdown of the platform from March 7 to 20 is the result of ONGC's decision to hook new pipelines to the platform, named BPA.

This has resulted in gas production from the field coming down from 37.5 million standard cubic metres per day (mmscmd) to 20.7 mmscmd.

Among those affected by the shutdown are the four private sector fertiliser plants -- Chambal Fertilisers, Oswal Chemicals and Fertilisers, Tata Fertilisers and Indo-Gulf Fertilisers.

Supply of gas to Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited's Gandhar and Baroda complexes have also been switched off. ONGC maintains that it is a planned shutdown and the user industries had been informed well in advance.

However, consumers say while ONGC had planned a shutdown in January, it had agreed postpone it till April when regassified LNG would be available.

The consumers allege that ONGC took a sudden decision to shut down the platform in March since it said the vendors did not agree with the new dates in April.

The user industries have protested against the "untimely" shutdown as "each plant is attempting to achieve its annual production target" at this time of the year.

Moreover, according to the users, the supply cut is discriminatory against the private sector since public sector fertiliser units, despite being in the same category, have been exempted from the switch-off.

The public sector units are learnt to be getting 50 per cent of their allocation. Industry sources said gas supply from March 21 to 30 would be increased to 31.5 mmscmd but during this period the supplies for private sector industries would be cut by around 60 per cent of their allocation, while the supply to the public sector firms would be cut by 28 per cent.

Gas jam

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• The closure of the platform from March 7-20 is the result of ONGC's decision to hook new pipelines
• This has resulted in gas production from the field coming down from 37.5 million mmscmd to 20.7 mmscmd
• Chambal Fertilisers, Oswal Chemicals and Fertilisers, Tata Fertilisers and Indo-Gulf Fertilisers are among the firms hit by the gas supply disruption