Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) — a Gujarat Government-owned GSPC Group company — plans to achieve financial closure for the 1,670-km Mehsana (Gujarat)-Bhatinda (Punjab) gas grid in January, according to sources.

The project, estimated to cost Rs 3,500 crore, is being implemented by a special purpose vehicle, with 52 per cent majority holding of GSPL.

In addition to the natural gas sources in Mehsana, the proposed trunk pipeline is scheduled to connect the LNG terminals of Petronet LNG (Dahej) and Shell (Hazira) and others through the existing Dahej-Vijaipur Pipeline (DVPL) operated by GAIL. PSU oil refiner Indian Oil has a 20 per cent participatory interest in the project, and Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum 11 per cent each.

The Rs 1,000-crore GSPL is a listed subsidiary of the State Government-owned Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation and owns 1,600 km of transmission network in Gujarat.

The company has already transferred nearly 400 km of distribution network to group city gas arm GSPC Gas and is planning to add another 1,000 km of transmission network in the State.

The Mehsana-Bhatinda segment is one of the three legs of the proposed 4,000-km grid connecting the KG Basin's natural gas sources at Mallavaram (Andhra Pradesh) to Srinagar in J&K, which were auctioned by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).

The GSPL-led consortium owns the right to construct and operate the two other legs Mallavaram- Vijaipur (Madhya Pradesh) connecting DVPL; Mehsana (Gujarat)-Bhatinda (Punjab) and Bhatinda-Srinagar (J&K).

The total estimated project cost of the three legs is nearly Rs 12,500 crore.

According to GSPL sources, of the three projects, the Mehsana-Bhatinda and Bhatinda-Jammu sections have been put into one SPV, while the Mallavaram-Vijaipur project will be undertaken by a separate SPV.

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