GAIL to spend Rs 7.55 billion to create gas grid in Varanasi
GAIL, the government-owned pipeline company, said it will spend Rs 7.55 billion to put in place a gas pipeline grid in Varanasi, Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency. The grid, which has been inaugurated, will cover an area of 1,535 sq km, it added. About 0.1 million households are likely to be covered in the project. Work on the project had started in late 2016. Piped Natural Gas (PNG) connection work for 8,000 houses has been completed which are expected to be connected by March 2019. About 800 km of steel and MDPE pipelines will be laid in the city as part of the project. Steel pipeline has already been laid for 28 km and medium density polyethylene (MDPE) pipe laying for 102 km completed. The CGD network will also cover four industrial areas and can cater to 150 industries and 500 commercial enterprises. “It is expected to give direct employment to 1,000 people and indirect employment to many more,” GAIL said. As part of the network, 20 CNG stations are also being put up, out of which two are already working. Overall, 20,000 vehicles are expected to use CNG in the city, GAIL said. The Varanasi CGD project was developed simultaneously with the Jagdishpur — Haldia & Bokaro — Dharnra/ Barauni- Guwahati Pipeline Project (JHBDPL/BGPL). The pipeline project of total length 3,291 km is being executed at the cost of about Rs. 130 billion. It is expected to bring gas-based energy to the North and East of the country. At present, gas-based energy is being used largely in Gujarat, and to some extent in Maharashtra. It will cater to the energy requirements of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Assam covering 70 districts and 3,150 villages. Besides Varanasi, CGD networks are also being developed by GAIL at Patna, Jamshedpur, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack enroute the pipeline. Lorenzo Mauldin Jersey
U.S. shale oil output expected to hit record high in August: EIA
U.S. oil output from seven major shale formations is expected to rise by 143,000 barrels a day to a record 7.47 million barrels per day in August, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in a monthly report on Monday. Production is expected to rise in all seven formations, with the largest gain of 73,000 barrels per day seen in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico. All shale regions except for Appalachia are at a high, according to the data. Meanwhile, U.S. natural gas production in the biggest shale basins was projected to increase to a record 70.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in August. That would be up almost 1.1 bcfd over the July forecast and would be the seventh monthly increase in a row. A year ago in August output in the biggest shale basins was 57.8 bcfd. The EIA projected gas output would increase in all the big shale basins in August. Output in the Appalachia region, the biggest shale gas play, was set to rise over 0.3 bcfd to a record high 28.9 bcfd in August. Production in Appalachia was 24.1 bcfd in the same month a year ago. Output was also expected to hit record highs in the Anadarko, Bakken, Niobrara and Permian basins in August. EIA said producers drilled 1,436 wells and completed 1,243 in the biggest shale basins in June, leaving total drilled but uncompleted (DUC) wells up 193 at a record high 7,943, according to data going back to December 2013. The Permian basin accounted for the bulk of this increase, with 164 new drilled but uncompleted wells reported. The number of drilled but uncompleted wells has been rising for 19 weeks in a row. A year ago in June, there were 5,964 DUCs. Drilled but uncompleted wells can generally be brought online quickly if infrastructure support becomes available or if price increases. Justin Simmons Jersey