Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has said that work on the ₹225-crore LPG receiving jetty on Puthuvype island, which is part of a larger project costing a total of ₹715 crore and including a storage facility, is nearing completion. The cost of jetty construction is ₹183 crore. Another ₹42 crore will go into dredging works, said a press release here.
According to IOC’s plan, the construction of both the facilities — jetty and storage terminal — are to be synchronised so that one facility will not become idle for want of the other.
The construction had begun in February 2016.
To be ready by March 2018
Though the jetty is part of the LPG import terminal project, protesters at the project site have not obstructed works, which are nearing completion. It will be ready by March 2018 except for dredging.
Dredging can be conducted just before the commissioning of the project as, otherwise, the required draft will not be available owing to siltation of the basin. IOC has invested ₹183 crore in the jetty, and the facility will simply be idling as the storage terminal will not be ready by the deadline, thanks to the ongoing protest at the storage terminal, the press release said.
The multi-user liquid terminal will not only be for unloading LPG but also for loading / unloading other petroleum products like crude oil, diesel, and petrol. The capacity of MULT is 4.52 million tonnes per year including LPG. The annual revenue earning expected from MULT after commissioning is ₹50 crore for the Cochin Port, the press release added.
