New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said work is on to set up 16,000 km of new gas pipeline network in the country, and it will be completed over the next four to six years.
Speaking at an even to dedicate the 450-km Kochi-Mangaluru natural gas pipeline, PM Modi said that the pipeline will help set up 700 compressed natural gas (CNG) stations and 2.1 million people avail piped natural gas (PNG).
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The 450-km pipeline will help supply clean fuel for households, vehicles and industries in Kerala and Karnataka. It will transport natural gas from Kochi in Kerala through Ernakulum, Trissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargode districts to Mangaluru in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka and provide industrial fuel and feedstock for petrochemical and fertilizer sectors.
Modi said the pipeline is part of India’ journey towards ‘one nation-one gas grid.’ A total of 1,544 km pipeline had been laid as part of the National Gas Grid in 2020. India plans to spend $60 billion in creating gas infrastructure till 2024, including for pipelines, liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals and city gas distribution (CGD) networks.
This comes in the backdrop of India’ push for a gas-based economy and assumes significance in a country that is now the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases after the US and China, and is among countries most vulnerable to climate change. India plans to reduce its carbon footprint by 33-35% from its 2005 levels by 2030, as part of its commitments to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted by 195 countries in Paris in 2015.
Gas comprises about 6.2% of India’s primary energy mix, far behind the global average of 24%. The government plans to increase this share to 15% by 2030. India’s gas demand is expected to be driven by fertilizer, power, city gas distribution, and steel sectors.
The Centre also plans to boost domestic gas production by 40 million standard cubic meters a day (mmscmd), from the current 80 mmscmd.
India is the fourth-largest importer of LNG. Some of the strategies adopted to meet the objective of energy security and energy transition include a faster clean energy trajectory by leveraging natural gas and green hydrogen. The country is projected to see over $300 billion investment by 2030 in the oil and gas sector to meet rising demand.
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