Assam to be an oil & gas hub as Modi pushes energy security
11 Feb 2019
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday laid the foundation stone for North East Gas Grid in Guwahati. As part of a visit to North-eastern states of Arunachal, Assam and Tripura, he also unveiled several other development projects in the state.
The oil and gas pipeline project is being implemented by five public sector oil companies - Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), ONGC, GAIL, Oil India Limited and Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL),at an estimated cost of Rs6,000 crore.
He said the North East Gas Grid will ensure uninterrupted availability of natural gas across the region and boost industrial growth in the region. He inaugurated Hollong Modular Gas Processing Plant in Tinsukia, which will deliver 15 per cent of the total gas produced in Assam.
The prime minister also inaugurated LPG capacity augmentation of mounted storage vessel in North Guwahati.
The prime minster laid the foundation stone of the Numaligarh Refineries Lt’s (NRL) bio refinery at Numaligarh and a 729 km gas pipeline from Barauni-Guwahati passing through Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim and Assam on the occasion.
“Numaligarh will be the largest among 12 bio refineries to be built across India,” he said, adding that these facilities will transform Assam into an oil and natural gas hub and boost India’s economy. Modi spoke about government plans for blending ethanol by up to 10 per cent.
He also laid foundation stones for city gas distribution networks in Kamrup, Cacher, Hailakandi and Karimganj districts. “In 2014 there were around 25 lakh PNG connections which became 46 lakh in just four years. The number of CNG refuelling stations also increased from 950 to 1,500 in the same period,” the PM pointed out
Besides the PM laid the foundation stone of a six-lane bridge over the mighty river Brahmaputra, which, he said, will reduce travel time between the two river banks - from 1-1/2 hours to just 15 minutes.
Speaking on the occasion he said, “Today is a new chapter in the history of the Northeast and the fast-paced development of this region has been a top priority for my government," Assam, he said, is on the path to progress. “Our dedication to North East has been proven in the interim budget as allocation to North East has been increased by more than 21 per cent,” he added.
On Citizenship Bill, the PM urged people not to be carried away by rumours related to the citizenship bill. “36 years have passed Assam accord has not been implemented yet and only Modi-led government would fulfill this,” he said.
The PM today visited Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh and unveiled three major projects. He also dedicated the 1.33 million metric tonne strategic petroleum reserve in Visakhapatnam to the nation
The facility, being implemented by Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve Limited (ISPRL), at a cost of Rs1,125 crore, has the largest underground storage compartment in the country.
He also laid the foundation stone for setting up Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd’s (BPCL) coastal installation project at Krishnapatnam. The project, spread over 100 acres, is estimated to cost Rs580 crore. The project will be commissioned by November 2020. The fully automated and state-of-the-art coastal installation project will ensure security of the petroleum products for Andhra Pradesh.
Giving a major push to the gas-based economy, the PM also dedicated to the nation, ONGC’s S1 Vasishta development project located in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) offshore basin in Andhra Pradesh. The cost of the project is about Rs5,700 crore. This project will contribute significantly in realising PM’s vision of reducing oil imports by 10 per cent by 2020.
On Monday, the prime minister will inaugurate Petrotech - 2019 at India Expo Centre, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
Petrotech-2019, the 13th International Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition, being organised under the aegis of the ministry of petroleum and natural gas, is considered to be India’s flagship hydrocarbon conference.
The three-day mega event, from 10 to 12 February 2019, will showcase the recent market and investor friendly developments in India’s oil and gas sector. Over 95 energy ministers from partner countries and 7,000 delegates from around 70 countries are expected to be part of Petrotech-2019.
The Petrotech-2019 exhibition being organised over 20,000 square meters at India Expo Mart, Greater Noida, will have over 13 country pavilions and around 750 exhibitors from over 40 countries, with exclusive areas on the Make in India and renewable energy themes.
“My vision for India’s energy future has four pillars: energy access, energy efficiency, energy sustainability and energy security,” Prime Minister Modi said while inaugurating the 12th edition of Petrotech in December.