MRPL plans to set up LNG Terminal at Mangalore port

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL) will explore a possibility of setting up a fixed or landbased LNG import terminal at Mangalore port.

New Delhi: Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL) will conduct feasibility studies for setting up a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Mangalore port.

MRPL, a unit of Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), will explore a possibility of setting up a fixed or landbased LNG import terminal as well as a floating receipt facility on highseas.

The company yesterday signed an MoU with New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT) to study the feasibility of setting up an LNG re-gassification terminal at Mangalore, the company said in a statement.

The MOU, signed by MRPL Managing Director H Kumar and NMPT Chairman P C Parida, "facilitates MRPL to initiate feasibility and other associated studies to identify the most suitable location for the facility, and to consider the option of setting up LNG terminal/ Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU)," it said.

In March 2013, MRPL's partent firm, Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) along with its partners Mitsui of Japan and BPCL had signed an agreement with NMPT to conduct feasibility of setting up USD 500-750 million LNG import terminal at Mangalore.
The outcome of the study is not known.

The ONGC terminal was to have an initial capacity of 2-3 million tonnes, which can be expanded to five million tonnes later.

In 2005, ONGC planned to build a LNG terminal, which was then shelved in 2006 due to change in leadership. But the company in 2013 started looking actively at the plan of LNG import, with the clear idea that domestic gas availability at 160 million standard cubic metres per day in 2018 will be way short of demand of 290 mmscmd.

"The LNG terminal once set up will bring gas -- cleaner, greener energy -- as a fuel option to the entire region, and will be advantageous to industries currently using naphtha as fuel," the MRPL statement said.

MRPL itself will be a big consumer of gas. Also, its petrochemical plants will also use gas.

Additionally, Mangalore hosts an iron ore industry, fertiliser plants and their ancillary industrial units. Currently, these industries are using heavy liquid sources like fuel oil and naphtha for their energy and feedstock needs.

Considering the growing demand of energy coupled with increasing focus on environment, there is a strong case for environment-friendly LNG replacing these polluting fuels, it said.