Little scope of supplying gas to new plants as precedence given to fertilizer, says MoP&NG

Responding to a PMO query on the gas availability to the 702 MW gas based power project being implemented by GSPC Pipavav Power Co. Ltd. (GPPC), the Ministry of  Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoP&NG) has said that increasing supply of gas to new power plants is difficult, since supply to the fertilizer sector has been given priority over the power sector.

Moreover, since indigenous gas availability in 2011-12 and 2012-13 is unlikely to increase substantially, and the demand projections from the Department of Fertilizers increasing steeply from a level of 5.307 mmscmd in 2011-12 to  27.197 mmscmd , 69.877 mmscmd and 72.877 mmscmd in 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 respectively, the possibility gas supply to the power sector appears slim.  

• Further, the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) constituted to decide issues pertaining  to commercial utilization of gas, has decided that gas supply from the KG D6 field will be firstly allocated to existing plants and that there will be no reservation of gas. Where new plants, constructed after 2009-10 are concerned, gas allocation shall take place subject to availability, after evaluations by the EGoM.  
• Responding specifically to the issue at hand, it has been mentioned Gujarat is already receiving the highest quantity of gas. Clearly this puts the future of the project in jeopardy, unless of course the the projectr proponents resort to the more expensive option of RLNG.