GAIL India Ltd. Chairman and Managing Director Manoj Jain on January 2 said as many as 28 cities and towns in Karnataka would get liquefied natural gas (LNG) for domestic, industrial and automobile consumption through city gas distribution (CGD) system in about a year.
He was speaking at a virtual press conference held to announce the inauguration of the 450-km Kochi-Kottanad-Mangaluru LNG pipeline on January 5 at the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Cities around Bengaluru and Mangaluru would first get LNG through CGD followed by other cities and towns. “Work on CGD has commenced in many of these localities,” he added. Bengaluru would also get LNG from Kochi terminal from Kottanad via Tamil Nadu, he added.
Mr. Jain said LNG would be cheaper, safer and cleaner compared to other sources of energy. “Using LNG would considerably reduce cost; the fuel was less polluting, thereby aiding environment conservation,” he added.
Allaying fears among public regarding the dangers of transporting LNG through pipelines, Mr. Jain said, “pipelines were constructed at international safety standards and chances of leakage of the gas were very few. Moreover, LNG is lighter than air and will dissolve immediately upon contact with open air. As such, there is no threat even if there are leaks,” he said.
Gail Directors E.S. Ranganathan (Marketing) and M.V. Iyer (Business Development) were present.
