Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday reviewed the arrangements for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to commission India’s first underground rock cavern for storage of crude oil.
Mr. Modi is expected to inaugurate the rock cavern and dedicate the 6.3 million tonne expansion project of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited next month. The date is not yet finalised.
Mr. Pradhan, who arrived here on Wednesday night in a special aircraft, also visited the cavern and held talks with Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL) – a special purpose vehicle wholly-owned by Oil Industry Oil Board. ISPRL CEO Rajan Pillai and top officials of the district administration briefed him on the arrangements.
An aide of the Minister told The Hindu that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu would call on Mr. Pradhan in the evening. The ISPRL is building two more caverns at Mangalore and Padur (near Udupi) as part of efforts to evacuate crude during emergencies and augment country’s energy security.
