GAIL gets environment nod for 220-Mw power plant

GAIL India Ltd, the nation's biggest gas marketing company, has received environmental clearance for setting up a 220 MW gas-based power plant at Raigad in Maharashtra at a cost of Rs 1,028 crore.

The state-owned firm plans to use 1 million standard cubic meters per day of natural gas to generated 220 mega-watt of electricity at the proposed combined cycle power plant.

The State Level Environmental Impact Assessment Authority of Maharashtra in its 63rd meeting "decided to accord environmental clearance to the project under the provisions of Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006," R A Rajee, Principal Secretary in Environment Department of Maharashtra Government, wrote to GAIL on December 23.

GAIL plans to set up the combined cycle gas based power plant within the existing LPG plant boundary. Electricity generated at the plant will be sold to Maharashtra.

The project, which will use natural gas or imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) as fuel, is proposed to be located within GAIL's existing LPG recovery plant at Raigad.

GAIL has appointed Tractebel Engineering Pvt Ltd as consultant for preparation of Detail Feasibility Report (DFR).

According to the company's proposal, natural gas requirement for use in the proposed project would be about 1 million standard cubic meters per day.

The supply of fuel is proposed to be available from GAIL pipeline network. A new pipeline of about 400 meters is to be laid to connect the power plant.

GAIL in the project reported stated that about 1 mmscmd gas is available for the proposed project. Gas can be made available for the project either from domestic fields or imported LNG).