Indian Oil commences “LNG at doorstep” with first consignment to HR Johnson's Pen plant

Indian Oil has inaugurated its 'LNG at doorstep' facility, the first of its kind in India, aimed primarily at catering to the needs of liquefied natural gas (LNG) customers who are located away from the main natural gas pipeline routes.

The new service was inaugurated by Sarthak Behuria, chairman, IndianOil at the Pen unit of H&R Johnson, south of Mumbai.

The Rs29-crore project covers investments at the tap-off-point at Dahej, a dedicated on road 'LNG train' of specially designed cryogenic tanker trucks between Dahej and Pen and includes storage tanks and regassifying vaporisers at H&R Johnson, Pen.

A cold recovery process unit planned at the facility can be used to recycle energy into the air-conditioning system at H&R Johnson leading to significant savings.

LNG, which consists mainly of methane (CH4), has the potential to replace other fuels in not just power generation but also in industrial applications such as furnaces, kilns, etc. On-site re-gasification to suit various applications provides additional flexibility. This effective modular system has the potential to cater to the huge unfulfilled natural gas requirements in the country for customers not connected by pipeline.

IndianOil first diversified into LNG as a consortium partner with Petronet LNG Ltd and started marketing the product to consumers on the main pipelines.

With the IndianOil 'LNG at doorstep' facility IOC has now made major inroads into LNG marketing to customers who don't have access to the main LNG pipeline grids. With rising energy input costs, it is now feasible to take natural gas to even remote customers. The successful commissioning of this innovative system by IndianOil has paved the way for a revolutionary channel for direct LNG supply.

The public sector oil marketing company says the project was made possible due to the support of partners like the Petroleum & Explosives Safety OrganiSation (PESO), Chart Industries Inc, USA, and Petronet LNG Ltd.

For H&R Johnson, a leading tile brand in the country, LNG use has several clear advantages due to its clean burning characteristics. Vijay Agarwal, MD, H&R Johnson, Dasgupta, ED (Gas) i/c, IndianOil, Samuel F Thomas, CEO, Chart Industries, USA and Alex Verghese, ED (LNG), IndianOil were also present on the occasion.