Piped gas inches closer to Kolkata

Kolkata: After the change in govt in the state, Bengal Gas Co Ltd (BGCL) has obtained necessary approvals from the administration to lay pipelines in Chandannagar and along a one-kilometre stretch near Kolkata airport, which had remained pending for several months. The company, a joint venture between GAIL and the state-owned Greater Calcutta Gas Supply Corporation, hopes to start supply of piped natural gas (PNG) in Chandannagar and adjoining areas within three months.

“We have started laying the main steel pipeline from Delhi Road to Chandannagar after obtaining necessary permissions from administration. The approvals were pending since last Oct. We hope to start supplying PNG in Chandannagar in the next three months and our target is to provide 10,000 household connections there this year,” BGCL CEO Anupam Mukherjee said.

The political change has also helped clear a major bottleneck in pipeline construction near airport. BGCL was awaiting permission since 2023 to lay a pipeline between Airport gate 2.5 and gate 1, a key link required for extending PNG infrastructure to Kolkata.

“We sought permissions from the administration to lay the pipeline along this one-kilometre stretch in 2023. However, it was pending since then, and a few days ago, we got a demand note from the administration, seeking the necessary permission fee. After submitting the money, we will get permission and start work immediately,” Mukherjee said. He added that pipeline work from Barasat to Airport gate 2.5 is progressing rapidly.

BGCL will also lay the main gas pipeline from Barrackpore Wireless Crossing to Shyambazar along BT Road to supply PNG to households in north Kolkata and its adjoining northern fringes.

The company launched PNG supply in Kalyani last Nov, marking the first such service in the KMDA area. BGCL has so far installed 862 gas meters in the township.

The GAIL pipeline from Durgapur has been laid till Gayeshpur in Nadia via Rajarambati, near Mogra in Hooghly. BGCL is responsible for laying the main pipeline from Rajarambati to Dankuni to supply CNG and PNG to its consumers in Hooghly and Howrah. The company has laid another pipeline from Gayeshpur to Kalyani and then further extending it to Baruipur via Barrackpore, Barasat, airport and Chingrighata to cater to Kolkata, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas.

BGCL started PNG supply at Uniworld and Rosedale housing complexes in New Town in Dec 2023 by carrying gas in cascade from Panagarh before flowing it into a pipeline infrastructure there to make it available in the kitchens.

BGCL is the sole licensee to supply CNG and PNG in 1,531 square kilometres of areas in Greater Kolkata, including the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area and parts of Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas adjacent to the city.

It may be recalled that Indian Oil-Adani JV began PNG supply in Panagarh four years ago, first in Bengal. HPCL also commenced PNG supply in some parts of Nadia and Hooghly, and Falta in South Bengal and Jalpaiguri town in North Bengal in Apr last year.