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Krishna Godavari LNG Terminal Ltd, a joint venture between VGS Group, Cavallo Energy of the US and Belgium’s Exmar, is fast-tracking its 3.6 million tonnes (mt) floating terminal project off Kakinada coast in Andhra Pradesh.
The company is hastening the commissioning schedules, expecting a surge in demand, as the new State Government is set to take immediate measures to boost power production.
The $450-million (₹2,670-crore) project is expected to fire up a significant chunk of the gas-famished power units in the region, which are today lying idle for want of fuel.
Speedy commissioningSet to face the first public hearing for environmental clearance later this month, the company is readying to start construction by November. It plans to commission the project by July next year.
Unlike shore-based LNG terminals, a floating facility, which will be the first-of-its-kind in India, takes relatively shorter time for commissioning, as ready-made floating storage and floating re-gasification units are available in the market.
The 5-mt Gangavaram Port LNG Terminal, being developed by Petronet LNG in neighbouring Visakhapatnam, is also looking at clearing the decks for the project at the earliest.
Boost to power productionMVSR Kamesam, Director (India Operations) of VGS Group, said the 3.6-mt terminal can fire up power projects with a capacity of 4,000 MW.
“After we add another 3.6 mt capacity in the next three to four years, a total of 8,000 MW of power can be generated,” he told Business Line .
An estimated 3,000 MW of capacity is today lying stranded in the new Andhra Pradesh for want of gas, especially after output from the KG Basin shrank.
The company intends to keep the cost of gas below $15 a unit (gas is measured in million British thermal units). “At this price, power can be produced at ₹5-5.50 a unit,” Kamesam said. Apart from the two floating units, which are being built in China for $250 million, the facility will include a mooring system to hold the LNG carriers and a sub-sea pipeline that will deliver gas to the shore.
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