The Tamil Nadu government's decision to not allow GAIL to run its Kochi-Bangalore natural gas pipeline across agricultural lands in the state will hamper the prospects of the 5 million tonne per annum LNG terminal at Puthuvype near here.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha's statement in the Assembly has left the terminal in the doldrums. The terminal is ready to receive natural gas from December onwards. Petronet LNG, which built the terminal, had earlier decided to commission the project in 2012 itself. But, it had not yet taken a final call due to the various issues that cropped up over the inter-state pipeline. It is a pre-condition for the terminal as it has to supply LNG without hindrance, once it commences operation.
The slow pace of the pipeline-laying work and delays in entering marketing tie-ups for the sale of gas had already delayed the commissioning of the terminal. The company had planned to commission the project in 2012, later slated for February/ March this year. Phase II of the pipeline project, to Mangalore and Bangalore, which involves an investment of Rs 3,400 crore is now held up. Some 505 km of this pipeline passes through Kerala, 310 km through Tamil Nadu and 85 km through Karnataka.
Only 43 km-long pipeline of Phase I of the project, connecting Puthuvype to Kalamassery has been commissioned so far. This can connect Eloor and Ambalamugal industrial belt of Kerala to the terminal. Also, the work on the pipeline connecting the Kayamkulam Thermal Power station has been slowed down for various reasons. A major part of this line is on the sea bed. So, the confusion and the slow pace in laying the pipeline in phase 2 of the project will hamper the prospects of the Kochi LNG terminal which is the second such terminal in the country after Dahej in Gujarat.
GAIL sources told Business Standard that the major beneficiary of the Kochi - Bangalore pipeline is the industrial units in Tamil Nadu. The line was supposed to pass through the industrial corridor of the state, connecting Coimbatore, Tirupur, Salem, Dharmapuri, Erode, Namakkal and Krishnagiri. Almost 50 per cent of the LNG transported through this line could be used by the industrial units in these centres, he said.
But, the latest stand of Jayalalitha would even question the functional viability of the Puthvype LNG terminal. The terminal, which has been delayed by almost three years is now complete and is ready for pumping gas imported from countries like Australia and Qatar.
GAIL should align the pipeline along the highways to avoid farmland and habitations, remove pipeline-related structures from the agriculture fields and restore them to their original condition and also compensate farmers for the loss. This is the latest stand of the AIADMK government in Tamil Nadu.
The pipeline runs in Tamil Nadu covering Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, Namakkal, Salem, Dharmapuri, and Krishnagiri districts.
A source familiar with the project said Tamil Nadu's stand literally stalls the Rs 3,263-crore project, with a planned length of 6,126 km of pipeline, carrying 16 mmscmd of gas.
In India, of the 12,000 km of pipeline for various projects, just about 25 km is aligned along highways as a 'last resort', the source said. Globally too, this is the approach for gas pipelines as a highway alignment will mean more populated areas will be impacted. In Tamil Nadu itself over 270 km of gas pipeline have been laid under other projects under agricultural land in Thanjavur, Nagapattinam and other areas, he added.
A change in the alignment will mean the cost will treble as the project will need to be redesigned to bring in a different class of pipes.
The project had met with some resistance in Kerala and parts of Karnataka where compensation was hiked.
For instance, in Karnataka, Gail hiked compensation for land six times compared to its initial estimate. particularly in urban centres like Tumkur.
In Kerala there are issues in Kozhikode and Kannur districts which are being tackled. The Kerala government is keen to speed up the pipeline-laying work and is active in evolving consensus in sensitive areas.
Earlier, GAIL began issue of compensating the land owners in Thrissur district in Kerala. The first set of cheques were handed over to the land owners of Poyya village of Kodungallur taluk last December. GAIL is laying the gas pipeline from Kochi to Koottanad in Palakkad district and thereon to Bangalore and Mangalore. Phase 2 of the project that has a length of 900 km, passes through Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
About 505 km of the pipeline alignment is in Kerala running through districts of Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode and Kannur. Public hue and cry over the land acquisition slowed down the pipeline-laying work and so far only 4 kms have been completed in phase-2.
GAIL has reduced the width of the land required under the Right of Use (RoU) from 20 metres to 10 metres.
Top officials of GAIL, Petronet LNG and Cochin port said that work on the gas pipeline, from Dhabol to Bangalore is progressing fast, and if the delay continues in Kerala, Mangalore may get connected from Tumkur on the Dhabol-Bangalore pipeline, depriving Kerala of the Koottanad-Mangalore stretch of the gas pipeline.
