Nearly a third of India’s 307 licensed city gas distribution areas are still unconnected to the natural gas pipeline network, hampering faster fuel adoption and causing licensees to miss customer connectivity targets.
A total of 91 licensed areas aren’t connected to the national gas pipeline network, with licensees in 44 of these areas using tankers to serve customers, according to the minutes of a meeting held by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board to review and help resolve the connectivity gaps. Twenty-one licensed areas remain unserved either by pipelines or tankers.
During the meeting, it was decided that connectivity would be provided to 44 licensed areas by December, according to the minutes. Natural gas pipeline operators blamed the “delay in the handing over of land by city gas distribution entities” for the absence of connectivity in many licensed areas, according to the minutes. It takes about six months after the handover of land to set up a city gas distribution skid that is used to measure and regulate the flow and pressure of gas and remove impurities.
City gas companies blamed the absence of connectivity on the “delay in delivering non-standard skids” and, in some cases, on the distant location of natural gas pipeline’s tap-off points from the licensed areas’ boundaries.
Executives at city gas companies say it’s not possible to serve a large base of households using tankers in any licensed area, as homes cannot tolerate a dryout due to any supply chain trouble. They argue that pipeline connectivity is essential, and natural gas pipeline operators should show flexibility in providing more than one tap-off point for a licensed area to make it efficient for city gas distributors.
“After deliberations, it was directed that the city gas distribution entities expedite the process of land handover to the natural gas pipeline entities and ensure effective planning for skid installation and commissioning at the site,” according to the minutes.
