Kochi LNG's 90 pc capacity lying unutilised: Minister

Nearly 90 per cent of the present capacity of LNG Terminal at Kochi is lying unutilised due to people's resistance to laying the pipeline network for carrying gas to different parts of the state, Industries Minister P K Kunhalikutty informed the Assembly today.
Last week's gas pipeline explosion in East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh, resulting in loss of lives, had further complicated the problem though the government was seeking various possibilities to resolve the issue, the Minister said in reply to a question in the House.
Making available LNG to various parts of the state would be a fillip to the economic growth and development in different sectors including industry and power generation, he said.

But people in many parts of the state, through which the pipelines is to be laid, were still apprehensive about their safety.
One of the options being considered to resolve the problem was to lay the pipes through public land left along the old "Cannoly canal" system across the state, much of which had been filled up over the years, Kunhalikutty said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said the Kochi City Gas project was awaiting the Centre's clearance. The Government would be pushing the matter for getting the approval at the earliest, he said.