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Informist, Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024

 

--Sources: HPCL may commission LNG terminal in Gujarat by end of Jan

--CONTEXT: HPCL Gujarat LNG unit faced multiple delays over 11 years

--Sources: LNG cargo to reach HPCL Gujarat LNG terminal around mid-Jan

 

By Sunil Raghu

 

AHMEDABAD – Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd.'s upcoming 5 million tonnes per annum liquefied natural gas terminal at Chhara in Gujarat is getting ready for commissioning by the end of January, two persons in the know of the development told Informist. The company was awarded the terminal nearly 11 years ago but failed to commission it owing to multiple challenges.

 

In April, when Hindustan Petroleum Corp. was finally getting set to commission the terminal, an LNG ship accidentally damaged the jetty, and the commissioning had to be put off again.

 

“Indian Oil Corp. Ltd. bought a cargo last week on behalf of HPCL,” a senior official in the Gujarat government's energy department said. Indian Oil Corp. is learnt to have purchased a partial commissioning cargo for delivery in mid-January from GAIL (India) Ltd.’s wholly-owned LNG trading subsidiary GAIL Global Singapore Pte. Ltd., another official said.

 

HPCL LNG Ltd., the wholly-owned subsidiary of Hindustan Petroleum Corp., has been trying to develop and commission the LNG storage and regasification terminal at Chhara since 2013. Thus far, however, the project had failed to take off despite several efforts.

 

In April, HPCL had received its first LNG cargo for commissioning the terminal. However, during the berthing process, someone initiated the emergency shutdown procedure, which detached the tanker from the berth. When the team tried to berth the tanker once again, two of the fenders on the berth, which provide a cushion for berthing ships, got damaged. One of the flanges of the delivery point of the ship also got damaged. This forced Hindustan Petroleum Corp. to abandon its terminal commissioning plan.

 

When it is finally commissioned, Chhara will be the fourth LNG terminal to become operational in the state of Gujarat, after Petronet LNG Ltd.'s 17.5 mtpa terminal at Dahej, a 6.8 mtpa capacity terminal at Hazira, and a 5 mtpa capacity terminal at Mundra. One more LNG facility, a 5 mtpa terminal by Swan LNG Ltd., is under construction at Jaffrabad.

 

HPCL LNG has also signed a gas transmission agreement with Gujarat State Petronet Ltd. to provide connectivity through a 36-km pipeline from Pipavav to Chhara. Through this pipeline, HPCL LNG would be able to transport natural gas from the Chhara terminal to markets in western and northern India.

 

At 1405 IST, shares of Hindustan Petroleum Corp. traded almost flat at INR 410.30 on the National Stock Exchange.  End

 

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Rajeev Pai

 

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