Construction Of India-Nepal Petroleum Pipeline Reaches Final Stage
The construction of infrastructure for importing petrol and kerosene through the Motihari-Amlekhganj petroleum pipeline has reached its final stage. Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) have also started the infrastructure construction work required to supply petrol and kerosene through pipelines at Amlekhganj depot. Pradeep Kumar Yadav, Head of Madhesh Regional Office of NOC, has said that the infrastructure construction work required for importing petrol and kerosene from Motihari-Amlekhganj petroleum pipeline is in the final stage. He said that for the storage of petrol and kerosene to be supplied through the pipeline, expansion of storage capacity at Amlekhganj depot, construction of labs and automatic machines, the budget are being spent in three areas. Yadav mentioned that out of four billion rupees to be spent on the work of supplying petrol and kerosene through the pipeline, IOC will give one billion rupees and NOC will spend three billion rupees. Currently, only diesel is being supplied through the Nepal-India inter-country petroleum pipeline from Motihari in Bihar, India to Amlekhganj in Nepal. Yadav said that after the start of the supply of petrol and kerosene through the pipeline from Motihari in Bihar, India to Amlekhganj in Nepal, there will be an annual saving of 1.80 billion rupees. Similarly, He said that the expansion of storage capacity, construction of labs and work of auto machines under construction at Amlekhganj depot will be completed by February 2024 and the target will be supply of petrol and kerosene through the pipeline. He said that two petrol tanks with a capacity of 4100 kilo liters, two transmix tanks with a capacity of 250 kilo liters, 24 fully automatic loading ways (refillers) for petrol transportation, a pump house and a laboratory are being constructed at Amlekhganj depot of NOC. Likewise, Yadav also said that upgrading of firefighting system, WS system for separating water and oil and construction of PMCC room are also underway. He said that Likhita Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, which has taken the contract for the construction of necessary infrastructure at Amlekhganj depot for petrol and kerosene storage, is working to complete the construction by mid-February 2024. Although it is possible to import diesel, petrol and kerosene through the same pipeline, only diesel was being imported due to the lack of storage capacity in the Amlekhganj depot. Since only diesel was being supplied through the pipeline, petrol and kerosene had to be transported from Barauni in Bihar to Amlekhganj by tankers. “Now all the three petroleum products namely petrol, diesel and kerosene are going to be imported through the pipeline. With this, the number of tankers being used for import from Amlekhganj to Barauni as well as the technical loss will be zero, the transportation cost will be saved and it will help in reducing environmental pollution,” said Yadav. Yadav said that after the completion of the works conducted at the Amlekhganj depot, it is estimated that NOC will save Rs 3.8 billion annually from the petroleum products coming from the pipeline. Since only 70 percent of the diesel required for Nepal is supplied through the pipeline, NOC has been saving two billion annually. Petroleum products can be supplied up to three liters per hour through the pipeline. It is said that after the expansion of the storage capacity at Amlekhganj depot, the storage capacity of diesel will reach 24,840 kilo liters and the storage capacity of petrol will reach 16,630 kilo liters. On September 9, 2018, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Delhi and Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli jointly inaugurated the 69 km long Motihari-Amlekhganj international petroleum pipeline by switching a press from Kathmandu. NOC is saving one to one rupee 50 paisa per liter of diesel while importing diesel through the pipeline. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who came to Nepal in 2014, announced that IOC will build a pipeline with subsidies for petroleum products to be supplied from India to Nepal.
Russia halts oil supply to Poland
Warsaw, Feb 26 (IANS) Russia has halted oil supplies to Poland via the Druzhba pipeline, Poland’s leading oil and gas conglomerate PKN Orlen said. Local media reported that the supply halt through the pipeline, exempted from the sanctions imposed by the European Union on Russia following the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, came a day after Poland delivered its first Leopard tanks to Ukraine. The company on Saturday said it is fully prepared for such a situation and that deliveries to its refinery can be made entirely by sea, Xinhua News Agency reported. “Only 10 per cent of the raw material came from Russia, and we will replace it with oil from other directions,” Daniel Obajtek, CEO of the Polish refiner, said on Twitter.
IOC to set up green hydrogen plants at all refineries; lines up Rs 2000 billion for net zero by 2046
India’s top oil firm IOC will set up green hydrogen plants at all its refineries as it pivots a Rs 2000 billion green transition plan to achieve net-zero emissions from its operations by 2046, its chairman Shrikant Madhav Vaidyasaid. Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is remodelling business with an increased focus on petrochemicals to hedge volatility in the fuel business, while at the same time turning petrol pumps into energy outlets that offer EV charging points and battery swapping options besides conventional fuels as it looks to make itself future-ready, he said. The company intends to expand its refining capacity to 106.7 million tonnes per annum from 81.2 million tonnes as it sees India’s oil demand climbing from 5.1 million barrels per day to 7-7.2 million bpd by 2030 and 9 million bpd by 2040. “Oil will continue to be a mainstay fuel for the next few years but we are preparing for transition which will involve a combination of green hydrogen, biofuels, EVs and alternate fuels,” he said. Hydrogen — the cleanest known fuel that discharges only oxygen and water when burnt — is being touted as the fuel of the future, but its relatively higher cost then alternate fuel currently limit its usage in industries. Refineries, which turn crude oil into fuel such as petrol and diesel, use hydrogen to lower the sulfur content of diesel fuel. This hydrogen is currently produced using fossil fuels such as natural gas. IOC plans to use electricity generated from renewable sources such as solar to split water to produce green hydrogen. In an interview with PTI, Vaidya said the company will set up a 7,000 tonnes per annum green hydrogen producing facility at its Panipat oil refinery at a cost of Rs 20 billion by 2025. “We are starting with Panipat but eventually all refineries will have green hydrogen units,” he said. This is part of the company’s target of achieving net-zero emissions from operations by 2046. “We plan to invest over Rs 2000 billion to achieve net-zero,” he said. These investments cover setting up green hydrogen facilities at refineries, improving efficiency, renewable energy capacity addition and alternate fuels. Currently, IOC’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emission, emanating majorly from the company’s refining operations, is 21.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCO2e) per annum. This will rise to 40.44 MMTCO2e by 2030 after considering the expansions planned and taking the emissions of its subsidiaries into account. The company plans to use natural gas in refineries in place of liquid fuels as well as replace grey hydrogen (produced from fossil fuel) with green one that is manufactured from renewable power. IOC is also looking at carbon offsetting through ecosystem restoration and Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS), among others. “We plan to achieve two-thirds of emission reduction through energy efficiency, electrification and fuel replacement efforts, while about a third of the total emission would be mitigated through options such as CCUS, nature-based solutions and purchase of carbon credits,” he said.