GAIL gets land for Rs 800 cr project in Kochi

Kochi; Pushing its plans for big investment in Kerala, Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) has got the land required for its Rs 800 crore extraction plant, setting in motion the process of acquiring land for the Rs 7,000 crore gas cracker complex, both of which would come up in the district.

Cochin Port Trust (CPT) has in principle agreed to hand over 25 hectare of land at Puthuvyppin near here to GAIL for setting up a plant for C2-C3 extraction from LNG gas, proposed to be imported by Petronet LNG Ltd.

This was formally decided at a meeting between GAIL Chairman Prashanto Banerjee and CPT Chairman Jacob Thomas and other senior officials of the two organisations.

The CPT, in principle, decided to allot the land adjacent to the LNG terminal complex, proposed to be set up by Petronet LNG Ltd. GAIL's Rs 800-crore plant would help reduce the energy loss as the project would be set up close to the LNG terminal complex.

On GAIL's plans for the Rs 7,000 crore gas cracker complex, in collaboration with the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation, at FACT, Udyogamandal near here, it was decided that a joint task force would be formed to work out modalities.

This was decided at the meeting yesterday between FACT Chairman S Balan and Banerjee, who also visited the site. GAIL had demanded 500 acre of land for the project, which was officially announced by the Prime Minister during his visit to Kerala in February.

The joint task force will work out modalities of the land, including the price. GAIL would bring LNG from Petronet LNG terminal coming up at Puthuvypin. The projects are likely to go on stream in 2010.

Apart from these, a Rs 2,500 crore joint venture between NTPC and GAIL was also among the fast track projects with the Union Ministries of Power and Petroleum.