Cooking gas in our homes at the turn of a tap? It’s not a pipe dream for Bangaloreans, who may be a couple of years away from joining other piped gas users in the country.
The new date set by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board to receive proposals from prospective city gas distribution companies is July 10, after it extended the date in April.
It called for bids in September 2013 and has extended the time thrice on requests.
Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation (KSIIDC), the State’s nodal infrastructure development body, says it will be a primary aspirant for the project for Bangalore urban and rural areas.
The government had hoped to directly take up gas supply through a joint company to be formed between KSIIDC and GAIL Gas, a subsidiary of main gas supplier Gas Authority of India Ltd.
However, the regulator mandates that piped natural gas projects be decided by bids.
The planned special purpose company with GAIL Gas is said to have been approved by the State Law and Finance Ministries and must go before the Cabinet next.
KSIIDC’s Chairman and Managing Director V.P. Baligar told The Hindu that without waiting for the new company to be formed, the State body would pitch for the project jointly with its Union government partner.
Within Bangalore, he said setting up the gas pipeline network would take 18 months and could have been done speedily if the project was assigned directly. While home supply is one plan, the other is to bring clean compressed natural gas to city transport systems, he said.
GAIL and KSIIDC have for some time planned to form the joint distribution company, tentatively named Karnataka Natural Gas Ltd. Mr. Baligar said the State was keen on taking the project to Mangalore, Mysore, Hubli-Dharwad, Gulbarga and places that fall near the 1,000-km Dabhol-Bangalore gas pipeline.
