The Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) plans to open 15 retail outlets supplying compressed natural gas (CNG) in Coimbatore district in this financial year, out of which two were opened recently.
IOCL sources said on Thursday that the two retail outlets were opened at Gandhi Managar and Sulur on April 19 to supply CNG for automobiles. Being a greener and more efficient alternative to existing vehicle fuels, the public will now have an option of using CNG for their vehicles as it costs around ₹ 70 per kg, for which it gives a mileage of around 25 km. These CNG retail outlets will refill fuel for those vehicles powered by CNG as well as the vehicles that run on petrol which are retrofitted with a CNG kit, the sources said.
At present, the CNG supply for the two retail outlets are being carried out using cascades (gas cylinders), which are mounted on light commercial vehicles and are transported by road. This is an interim measure as IOCL is currently constructing a steel pipeline network is being developed in various parts of the district to bring piped gas connectivity to industries, commercial and domestic customers, which is expected to be completed by June.
Construction works for a City Gate Station to supply CNG and Piped Natural Gas (PNG) is under way at Pichanur near Madukkarai. Through this City Gas Distribution (CGD) project, about 9.1 lakh households would receive domestic PNG connections in a span of eight years, the IOCL sources noted.
According to a press release, the IOCL is developing CGD networks in Coimbatore and Salem districts and will be providing over 12 lakh PNG connections to domestic households and 431 CNG stations for vehicle refilling in the two districts over a period of eight years.
