Piped natural gas is changing lives in Coimbatore
Indian Oil Corporation Limited
(IOCL), which has started providing them with piped natural gas (PNG).
"Switching to piped natural gas has made our lives so much easier," says K Malathi, of Vellalore, who has been using PNG for the past 10 months. "Earlier, my husband and I, both working, had to wait uncertainly for the delivery of LPG cylinders. We also had to depend on delivery boys to carry the cylinder to our apartment on the first floor. Now, we don't face that hassle."
For the same cost as an LPG cylinder that lasted about three months, the couple says their PNG supply comfortably lasts for four months.
"It's more convenient, and saves us time and effort," says Malathi.
The IOCL has laid a network of underground steel pipelines for 103 kilometres in the district from the City Gas Station (CGS) at Pichanur near Madukkarai. It draws gas from Kochi to efficiently deliver natural gas to residential areas.
"Residents in areas such as Vellalore, Malumichampatti, Kaniyur and Arasur were provided connections within a year.
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In the next two months, supply is expected to begin at Cheran Ma Nagar, Kalapatti, Vilankurichi and Nehru Nagar. Next phase will cover Saravanampatti, Chinnavedampatti and Vellakinaru areas. Our plan is to provide at least three lakh connections across the district by the end of 2030," said an IOCL official.
PNG consists of more than 90% methane and is a lighter fuel, he says. "In the event of a leakage, it evaporates into the air.
For safety purposes, the pipeline is equipped with a safety valve every kilometre."
IOCL offers three schemes for domestic customers, with billing based on meter readings every 60 days. Customers are not allowed to make cash payments either for new connections or regular billing. Only online payments are accepted through UPI, debit/credit cards, net banking and mobile wallets.
IOCL has also started supplying PNG to industries.
A Jaganathan, manager of a firm at Malumichampatti that makes SAARC cases, military cases and roto-moulded protective cases, says the burner pressure in PNG is higher compared to LPG, which is an advantage for their operations.
"When we used LPG, the low pressure often led to production losses. In contrast, PNG provides high pressure along with an uninterrupted 24x7 supply. There is no need to maintain an inventory of LPG cylinders, and maintenance issues are significantly reduced.
Gas consumption is also lower with PNG, making it at least 12% to 15% more cost-effective" he says.
According to the IOCL officer, three industries have already been provided connections. "Six industries at Arasur are expected to be connected in the coming days. PNG connections will also be extended to educational institutions, hotels and bakeries in a phased manner."
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