VGS designs second barge-base LNG facility for Tamil Nadu

The US-based VGS Group has completed the design of its second USD 400 million Floating LNG Regasification Unit (FRU) and said it will start supplying gas to the Tamil Nadu market from 2016.
"We have completed the feasibility study and design of our second barge-based project for Tamil Nadu," VGS Group President Gaurav Tiwari told PTI.
"It will be similar to VGS's FRU project in Kakinada, which is scheduled to commence commercial operations in the first quarter of 2015," Tiwari said on the sidelines of two-day CWC World LNG Series - Asia Pacific Summit which concludes here today.
"We will commence operation with 4 million tonne per annum (mpta) storage capacity at the terminal, and then increase it to 7.2 mtpa," he said pointing to the flexibility of the terminal in supporting supplies to the Indian market.

The terminal has attracted three players, including a leading power company in India, to store gas at VGS terminal on the East Coast of the country, said Tiwari.
The USD 400 million VGS East Coast India LNG Import Terminal would supply gas to Andhra Pradesh market, especially aiming to serve the 7-gigawatt of idling power generation capacity around Kakinada, which has not commence operations due to shortage of fuel supply.
Tiwari said VGS' floating regasification plant with ship-based storage facility, located near Kakinada Deepwater Port, has become a global trend setter in facilitating LNG supplies to consumers.
The Indo-American VGS Group would link North American and Gulf Region natural gas supply with its LNG import terminals on India's heavily industrialised , yet gas starved East Coast markets.