LPG pipelines in India will enter a new phase of expansion with the authorization of approximately 1,800 kilometers of infrastructure that will connect six states across the country. The three corridors will be developed by GAIL India and will require an estimated investment of ₹7,000 crore.
The decision will allow the LPG common carrier network authorized by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) to expand from approximately 7,700 to 9,500 kilometers, representing growth of nearly 23.5%.
However, the physical scale of the expansion explains only part of its importance. India relies heavily on imported LPG that enters through coastal facilities and must subsequently be transported to consumption centers. Expanding pipeline transportation seeks to reduce dependence on tanker trucks and create corridors capable of moving larger volumes of fuel into the country’s interior.
LPG pipelines in India will connect six states
The new infrastructure will be distributed across three corridors with different geographical characteristics. The first will extend 556 kilometers between Cherlapally, in Telangana, and Nagpur, in Maharashtra. A second system will span approximately 633 kilometers and connect Shikrapur, in Maharashtra, with Goa and Hubli, in Karnataka.
The third project will extend 611 kilometers between Jhansi, in Uttar Pradesh, and Sitarganj, in Uttarakhand. Together, the infrastructure will cross Telangana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, and Goa.
GAIL (India), a state-owned company with an extensive presence in the country’s energy infrastructure, will be responsible for developing all three projects.
The scale helps put the change into perspective: adding 1,800 kilometers is equivalent to incorporating a length of infrastructure greater than the overland distance between many major cities across the subcontinent.
The authorized network will grow to approximately 9,500 kilometers
The projected increase from 7,700 to nearly 9,500 kilometers of LPG pipelines in India strengthens a strategy the country has been pursuing to transform the way it distributes this fuel.
One of the most important precedents is the Kandla-Gorakhpur LPG Pipeline, authorized at approximately 2,757 kilometers and considered the country’s longest LPG pipeline. The new corridors extend that strategy into additional regions and demand centers.
The expansion is particularly significant because of India’s supply geography. A substantial portion of imported LPG arrives at coastal terminals, while many consumption centers are located hundreds of kilometers inland.
This requires logistics infrastructure capable of connecting import terminals, storage facilities, bottling plants, and consumer markets.
India seeks to reduce LPG transportation by road
The transformation is not limited to building additional kilometers of pipeline. The PNGRB aims to progressively shift a larger share of LPG transportation from roads to pipelines. The regulator believes this transition could reduce logistics costs, road congestion, and emissions, while also decreasing the number of tanker trucks used to transport the fuel.
From an operational perspective, a pipeline system also makes it possible to establish continuous flows between supply points and distribution centers, rather than relying exclusively on individual movements by road transportation.
This does not eliminate the need for trucks. Final distribution will continue to require different logistics modes. What changes is the way large volumes are transported over long distances.
The expansion poses new integrity challenges
Building approximately 1,800 additional kilometers means incorporating a considerable number of new assets into India’s energy system.
In addition to the pipelines themselves, the projects will require associated facilities for pumping, valves, metering, control, overpressure protection, monitoring, and isolation, depending on the final design of each corridor.
Once operational, these assets will enter inspection and maintenance cycles aimed at preserving their containment and availability for decades.
Integrity management will be particularly relevant because LPG is transported under pressure. Corrosion control, cathodic protection, monitoring of operating conditions, leak detection, and right-of-way management will form part of the challenge of maintaining an increasingly extensive network in service.
Pipelines will strengthen security of supply
The ₹7,000 crore investment must ultimately be viewed within a broader energy strategy. India needs to move large volumes of LPG from the points where the product enters the country or is processed to inland regions with considerable demand. The greater this logistical dependence becomes, the more important it will be to have multiple corridors and sufficient transportation capacity.
The three authorized projects do not, by themselves, change the origin of the LPG consumed by the country, but they could transform how it is distributed once it becomes available within the national territory.
Once they become operational, the authorized network will approach 9,500 kilometers. The increase from the current 7,700 kilometers will make these projects more than just a regional expansion: it will represent growth equivalent to nearly one-quarter of the authorized common-carrier infrastructure for transporting this fuel.
Thus, the new LPG pipelines in India will connect six states as the country seeks to build a supply chain that is less dependent on road transportation and has greater capacity to move fuel between its terminals, distribution facilities, and major demand centers.
Source: The Economic Times
