State-run oil marketing firms will invest Rs.1,500 crore in Karnataka to increase the coverage of cooking gas supply across the state, a top official said Friday.
“As part of the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin LPG (liquefied petroleum gas)Vitrak Yojana, OIC, HPCL and BPCL will invest Rs.1,500 crore to increase the coverage of cooking gas distribution to 76 percent from 53 percent in Karnataka over the next three-four years,” Petroleum Secretary S. Sunderashan told reporters here.
Under the novel scheme, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murali Deora Friday opened the first draw of lots for 48 distribution centres in the state at Devanagonthi, about 25km from here.
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“An additional 124 dealers will be appointed soon in the state, as demand for petrol, diesel, kerosene and cooking gas has been growing at 10-15 percent annually in the state as against 5-10 percent in the past,” Sunderashan said.
The state-run Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) will build a gas pipeline from Dabhol in Maharashtra to Bangalore and another from Kochi in Kerala to Chennai via Mangalore and Bangalore at a cost of Rs.5000 crore by 2012.
Reliance is also building a pipeline from Chennai to Bangalore to supply gas for power projects and other industrial users.
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Mangalore Refinery Petroleum Ltd (MRPL) is investing Rs.15,000 crore to increase its refining capacity to 15 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) from 11.8 mtpa.
“The state-run of Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) is building strategic petroleum reserve to store 1.2 million tonnes of crude at Mangalore and 2.5 million tonnes at Kadur in Chikmagalur district in central Karnataka,” Sundershan noted.
As part of the government’s long-term policy for energy security, ONGC plans to have 3-5 million tonnes of strategic oil reserves at eight select centres across the country for emergency use.
“A similar storage with 1.33 million tonnes capacity is being built at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh,” Sundersashan added.