EGoM likely to be flooded with demand for gas

The much-talked meeting of the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on Wednesday is likely to see a flood of demand for natural gas from sectors like power, fertilizer and refineries that far outstrips the supplies. While Reliance Industries has already stated that it cannot produce more than current 60 million standard cubic meters a day of output from its eastern offshore KG-D6 fields, demands for 52.28 mmscmd gas have been placed during the current fiscal alone, official sources said. The government has so far allocated about 64 mmscmd of KG-D6 output to customers in power, fertilizer, refineries, steel and city gas sectors. The field may hit the peak output of 80 mmscmd sometime in 2012, making available about 16 mmscmd for allotment. Also that year, Gujarat State Petroleum Corp (GSPC) is likely to start producing 8-9 mmscmd from its Krishna Godavari fields and another 3 mmscmd would come from ONGC fields. Against these supplies, power ministry has sought almost 13 mmscmd of gas for plants commissioning in 2010-11 fiscal and another 8.75 mmscmd for units coming up next fiscal, they said, adding it further wants 3.50 mmscmd for power plants coming up in 2012-13. 

Fertilizer ministry wants 1.1 mmscmd this year, 3.39 mmscmd next and 11.03 mmscmd in 2012-13 for urea manufacturing units. State-owned gas utility GAIL India wants 0.75 mmscmd for its Pata petrochemical plant in Uttar Pradesh. Sources said public and private sector oil refineries need over 35 mmscmd gas this fiscal and another 57.44 mmscmd in the next while city gas distribution firms wants 1.47 mmscmd in 2010-11 and 6 mmscmd in the next. Steel ministry has communicated a requirement of 1.541 mmscmd gas before expansion and 4 mmscmd after implementation of expansion plans for various steel plants of SAIL. These demand is without considering the 28 mmscmd Anil Ambani Group has sought for a period of 17 years for its proposed 8,400 MW power plants at Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, Shahapur in Maharashtra, Samalkot in Andhra Pradesh and Jambusar in Gujarat. None of the plants may need gas before 2013