Unocal Proposes to Lay Tripura Gas Pipeline

ONGC

Unocal said at the Petrotech 2003 conference that it was considering a pipeline from Tripura to West Bengal through Bangladesh to feed un-utilized gas in the remote North-Eastern State to mainland consumption centers.

"We are keen on laying pipeline for transportation of gas from Tripura to Kolkata. There is a market for Tripura gas some 500-600 km away," Unocal vice president Andrew Fawthrop told PTI.

Unocal proposes to feed Tripura gas into its proposed gas pipeline from Bangladesh to North India.

Like its proposed Indo-Bangladesh pipeline project, Unocal would lay the Tripura gas pipeline with local Indian companies, he said.

"It makes sense to work on such a project with some partners, and we are identifying partners for that. Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) can be one such partner."

It is believed that the abundant gas in Tripura can meet the energy requirements of the eastern region of the country.

Incidentally, ONGC is also the owner of Tripura gas fields, which are currently under-producing because of lack of market in the North Eastern region.

In the absence of any willing Indian partner, Unocal would lay the pipeline on its own, Fawthrop said.

Unocal, which operates the gigantic Bibyani gas fields in North Bangladesh, has proposed to lay a 1,363-km long cross-country pipeline from the fields to Delhi for export of 500 million cubic feet of gas per day.


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