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| Piped CNG to Hyderabad by next month |
| K Rajani Kanth / Chennai/ Hyderabad Aug 25, 2010, 00:35 IST |
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The twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, which come under the ambit of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation with population exceeding 7 million, are expected to receive the much-awaited piped compressed natural gas (CNG) supply from this September.
“Bhagyanagar Gas Limited (BGL) has already started work on the pipeline between Shameerpet and Bowenpally. This is expected to be completed by this month end and supplies from September,” company officials, requesting anonymity, told Business Standard. BGL is a joint venture between Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Gail (India) Limited.
BGL is planning to set up 50 CNG stations for automobiles in the city, besides providing over 250,000 domestic connections in the next two years. “We are planning to progressively increase the number to 75 in the next five years,” the officials said.
Bhagyanagar is the sole agency mandated to supply CNG in the state. “We have tie-ups with all petroleum companies, including HPCL, Indian Oil Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation," they said.
“Today, we have problem in catering to the demand as the gas comes from Vijayawada. Once the Shamirpet pipeline connection is ready, the 50 CNG stations that we have proposed will be sufficient to cater to the requirements of all the CNG vehicles plying on the Hyderabad roads,” the officials said.
The city currently has four CNG stations, all of them operated by Bhagyanagar India, for HPCL selling CNG at Rs 40 per kg.
On the auto liquid petroleum gas (ALPG) front, there has not been a significant growth in the domestic market. According to VN Diwakar, vice president —business development and special projects of city-based SHV Energy Private Limited, there are a few major concerns in expanding the ALPG segment in the current context.
SHV, known for its Super Gas brand, is the Indian subsidiary of the over 11-billion euro family-owned Dutch company SHV Holdings.
“Diversion of subsidised domestic LPG for use as automotive fuel is rampant. Due to high magnitude of the problem, the steps taken by the authorities to control these malpractices have had negligible or no impact. The use of domestic cylinder as well as transfer of gas from a domestic cylinder into motor vehicles, both continue unabated,” he said.
SHV Energy, through its franchisees, operates 20 auto LPG dispensing stations (ALDSs) across Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Maharashtra. There are another 15 stations in the pipeline.
“However, the time required for clearances from local authorities to set up an ALDS is another hindrance to a faster growth in the network. Many of the projects have been shelved due to delays in receiving no objection certificate from local authorities. In a few cases, we are following up with the local authorities for clearances for over 24 months now. This has increased the overall project costs,” Diwakar said.
Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh government has urged the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) to speed up the process of piped cooking gas distribution.
“We have already prepared a distribution plan for 12 districts, and submitted expressions of interest with the Board, requesting it to complete the gas distribution in cities like Hyderabad, Kakinada, Vijayawada and Rajahmundry as soon as possible. A request to PNGRB to ensure that all main trunk lines are laid covering south coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema areas, too has been made,” a government official said.
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