Regional LNG: Petronet?s Kochi LNG terminal gets environmental permit

The environment ministry has cleared a proposal from Petronet LNG to set up a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Kochi, Financial Express of India reported.

The company is setting up an LNG terminal of 2.5 million tons per annum (mtpa) with an expansion provision of up to 5 mtpa, which includes construction of jetty, breakwater, two storage tanks of 110,000-cubic meter capacity each, vaporisation system and utilities, near the commercial capital of Kerala.

Petronet has already completed all the pre-project activities. All statutory approvals and clearances have also been obtained. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 2,000 crore. RasGas of Qatar will supply 2.5 mtpa of LNG as per a sale-purchase agreement entered into by the company earlier.

A company release said here on Friday that construction activities at the company?s first LNG terminal of 5 mtpa capacity at Dahej in Gujarat are in full swing and overall actual progress is around 80 per cent. The Dahel terminal will be ready to receive first shipment by December. Fabrication of LNG tankers is also progressing ahead of schedule at Daewoo?s shipyard in South Korea, and as per the time charter agreement the first tanker will be delivered by December.

With the commissioning of the Dahej terminal, the stage is set for receiving 20 million standard cubic meters per day of natural gas from RasGas, Qatar which will be marketed in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and Punjab through the HBJ pipeline network. (*)