Bangaloreans to get LPG through pipes

BANGALORE: State-run Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) and Karnataka state Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd’s (KSIIDC) joint venture to set up natural gas infrastructure in industrial estates and clusters, city gas distribution networks and distributed power generation projects in industrial areas across the city has completed 50 percent of work.The distribution networks will supply piped gas to homes, compressed natural gas (CNG) to commercial and passenger vehicles and fuel to industrial estates in the city. The work has started in Magadi Road, Sumanahalli, Outer Ring Road, National Highway-4, BHEL circle, Big Bazar, Ramamurthy Nagar, Old Madras Road, KR Puram, Marthahalli, Silk Board Junction and National Highway-7. Work on Magadi Road and BHEL circle is already completed. The entire process is slated to be finished by 2013.The city will see 700 kilometres of pipelines. First they will lay a big gas pipeline and later they will release the LPG through small pipes. A meter will be fixed for the pipe and customers should pay monthly.Laying the 10-kilometre pipeline in Magadi Road is already completed and GAIL is waiting for the Bangalore Water Supply And Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to start their work in Thippagondanahalli so that they can lay the pipeline of 15 kilometres together with the BWSSB.The project is a public-private partnership, where GAIL and KSIIDC will have 26 percent and 24 percent equity stakes respectively while financial institutions, strategic partners and investors will jointly hold the balance 50 per cent equity.Divisional General Manager of GAIL Parthajana said, “Laying the gas pipeline in the city is going smoothly.We have already completed the work in some areas, once the pipeline work is completed, we will start working on sub-supply piped gas to homes, compressed natural gas (CNG) to commercial and passenger vehicles, and fuel to industrial estates in the city. We also talked to BWSSB officials regarding laying the pipeline in  Thippagondanahalli, so that instead of doing double work, we can finish and lay the pipeline together. GAIL is currently implementing the 1,413-km Dabhol-Bangalore pipeline at `5,000 crore to carry 16 million metric standard cubic meters (mmscm) of gas per day and the 1,114-km Kochi-Mangalore-Bangalore pipeline at `3,300 crore to carry another 16 mmscm of gas per day.