Gail’s Kochi-Mangalore Gas Pipeline to Finally Commission by the First Week of August

After years of struggle towards accomplishing the Kochi-Mangalore gas pipeline project, Gail India Ltd. has finally announced that the project will become operational by the next month i.e. August. The 444-km long Natural Gas pipeline project was scheduled to be commissioned way back in 2014. The project was launched in 2009 at an estimated cost of INR 2,915 crore and was expected to take around five years for its completion. However, executional delays put forth by the public and politicians in the form of strong opposition on safety and commercial grounds ensured that the project delayed further. Moreover, the concerned the authorities mentioned that unwanted delays have nearly doubled the project cost to INR 5,751 crore now. In a recent interview with Tony Mathews, the current GM of Gail (Kerala), it was stated that the pipeline across the Chandragiri river in Kasargod district would be ready by the first week of August and the headquarters can then select an appropriate date for the official commissioning. The official further stated that the project postponement was further exacerbated by the deluge that the state suffered in 2018 and also Nipah virus scare in FY18-19. The COVID-19 related lockdowns further slowed down the project development, however the company is now fully prepared towards accomplishing the rarest engineering projects for the gas pipeline network across the country. It was also mentioned that post the commissioning, the gas demand in the state which currently stands at 60 million cubic meters will touch 80-90 million cubic meters per annum now.