NE BUSINESS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, SEPT 15
The Gujarat government on Tuesday approved a letter of intent (LOI) for the world’s first Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) terminal at Bhavnagar port with a proposed investment of Rs 1,900 crore, an official statement said.
CM Shri @vijayrupanibjp gives nod to the world’s first Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) terminal at Bhavnagar Port. pic.twitter.com/UjRGHoJRnr
— CMO Gujarat (@CMOGuj) September 15, 2020
The LOI was approved by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and it will be handed over to the consortium of companies to develop the CNG terminal, it added.
The project will be developed jointly by UK-headquartered Foresight Group, Mumbai-based Padmanabh Mafatlal Group, and a Netherland-based consortium.
The Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) had signed a memorandum of understanding with Foresight Group to set up this port terminal at the Vibrant Gujarat Summit held in January 2019, the government release said.
In-principle approval was given by the Gujarat government in November 2019, and now with the issuing of LOI, the private players will have to take all the necessary permission before starting the work, it said.
Apart from the CNG terminal, the investors would also develop a Ro-Ro terminal (for roll-on/roll-off ships), liquid cargo terminal, and container terminal at Bhavnagar port with a cumulative investment of Rs 1,900 crore.
The proposed CNG port terminal will have a capacity of 1.5 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA).
The GMB manages the existing port at Bhavnagar, having a capacity to handle 3 MMTPA cargo. The new terminals would take the overall capacity to 9 MMTPA, the release said.
While the consortium would invest Rs 1,300 crore in the first phase, Rs 600 crore will be invested in the second phase.
To develop CNG and other terminals on the north side of the existing port would require major modifications in the existing infrastructure, including dredging in the water channel of the port basin, construction of two lock gates, and off-shore infrastructure for CNG transportation, the release said.
Gujarat has Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals in Hazira and Dahej ports.
