Ratnagiri to get Reliance’s D-6 gas

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New Delhi, Nov 6 : In what may provide a new lease of life to the Ratnagiri power project (erstwhile Dabhol), the government has decided that the entire gas requirement of the beleaguered power project would be met indigenously and from the D6 gas field of Reliance Industries Limited in the Krishna Godavri basin.

The empowered group of ministers (eGoM) on gas pricing and utilisation, under the chairmanship of external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee met on October 23 and recommended allocation of 8.5 million standard cubic meters (mmscmd) of gas to Ratnagiri power project from September 2009.

According to the minutes of the eGoM meeting, RGPPL would be accorded priority and will be supplied 1.4 mmscmd during January to March 2008 and 2.7 mmscmd during April to September 2009 (subject to commencement of production by RIL) within the overall allocation of power sector (18 mmscmd) decided earlier by the eGoM from RIL’s D-6 field. Further, as per the eGoM’s decision, as much as 8.5 mmscmd would be supplied to RGPPL after September 2009 from RIL’s D-6 field.

This is a significant decision as the quantum of gas allocated to Ratnagiri is almost half the total quantity of gas earmarked by the eGoM for the power sector on priority basis. Out of the 40 mmscmd of gas, to be produced by RIL from its D6 gas block, as much as 18 mmscmd has been allocated for power plants lying idle due to gas shortages.

Alongside, the government has also acceded to the long pending demand of the Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y R Reddy that, given the proximity of the D6 gas field, the stranded gas based power plants in the state should be connected with RIL’s gas field in the KG basin. Sources said that the government of Andhra Pradesh has requested that 8.93 mmscmd gas be supplied to the 10 power plants situated in the state, including the stranded power plants.

The stranded gas based power projects in Andhra Pradesh will be accorded the next priority. It will be only after meeting the demand of RGPPL and power plants in Andhra Pradesh that the demand of NTPC and other power projects will be considered.