TN gets first natural gas station via AG&P

CHENNAI: AG&P, the global downstream LNG and gas logistics company, has announced the opening of Tamil Nadu’s first-ever natural gas mother station, in Ramanathapuram under its brand AG&P Pratham.

The new station, located at Valantharavi, will receive natural gas directly from the nearby GAIL gas treatment facility and will be distributed by commercial trucks to CNG stations across the district.

The new facility will provide the district with secure and reliable supply of clean and cost-saving fuel. It will initially supply compressed natural gas to CNG stations, giving vehicles access to a superior fuel in place of costlier and heavy polluting fuels such as diesel and petrol.

The virtual pipeline will allow the public immediate access to natural gas, a clean and cost-effective fuel. AG&P Pratham will serve the PNGRB (Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board) declared six districts out of the 12 districts in TN, namely, Kanchipuram, Changalpattu. Vellore, Ranipet and Tirupathur.

Manish Goswami, AG&P COO, TN, Andhra Pradesh & Rajasthan, said “Our mother station will power AG&P Pratham’s City Gas Distribution network, as well as supply gas to other CGD gas infrastructure companies to meet the growing demand for cleaner energy in the state.”

CNG can be used in almost all vehicles, including cars, auto-rickshaws and heavy-duty transit vehicles such as buses and trucks. CNG offers better fuel-efficiency, significantly improved mileage and a reduction in maintenance costs. CNG-fuelled auto-rickshaw drivers, taxi drivers and car rental owners, for both AC and non-AC car models, have reported up to 55 pc surge in savings and earnings.

In 2018 as part of the Government’s city gas distribution bidding process, the PNGRB granted AG&P the exclusive licence to develop the CGD networks in Ramanathapuram, Kanchipuram and Vellore, covering over 14500 square km of TN.