More pipelines needed to transport petroproducts

Oil companies, GAIL should work together for this: Panabaka Visakhapatnam: Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Panabaka Lakshmi said that there was a need to lay more pipelines and develop cross-country network for transporting oil and gas products to remote areas for which oil companies and Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) should come together. Addressing the delegates at a two-day workshop on oil and gas pipelines 'Dynamics of pipeline transportation � Ensuring safe and sustainable energy' jointly organised by GAIL and the Centre for High Technology on Oil and Gas Pipelines, she said a concerted effort by all agencies would be needed to draw up plans, mobilise the resources and implement such a massive programme properly. "It is a prerequisite for energy security and economic growth and we must all strive towards it," she said. Union Secretary of Petroleum and Natural Gas Vivek Rae said that India needed an additional one lakh km length of cross-country pipeline to transport gas and petroleum products. He said an investment of Rs 6 lakh crore was needed for the purpose as a km of pieline would cost Rs 6 crore. Stating that the pipeline assumed crucial role in the future for transporting gas and petroleum products, he said a massive effort was needed to mobilise the required resources .He also mentioned that savings and investment rate should be increased to 40 per cent in this regard. "We have to plan for 30 to 40 years to create best infrastructure as it is most important for the development," he added. The nation needs an additional 1,00,000 km length of pipeline network across the country in the next 15-20 years. "For that, our savings and investment rate has to rise to 40 per cent. We cannot hope for much FDI in the sector. Tough decisions need to be taken and if we fail to take them, there will be anarchy," he said. He also spoke about regulatory challenges, the issue of right of use, safety aspects and planning issues.