GAIL's mega gas highway plan

The Indian economy is slowly moving towards gas-based economy and that is where pipelines become one of the first priorities for the government. To address the issue the first names comes in mind is the government-owned gas transporter GAIL, which has proposed to set up a gas highway but that may also translate into another cess for the common man. With availability of 80 million cubic meters of gas from Reliance Industries' D-6 block in the Krishna Godavari basin, India's gas supplies will be doubled and to carry about 220 million square centimetre of gas per day, the government has already proposed the concept of a gas highway. Well, it seems that state owned gas transporter GAIL wants to implement it. GAIL has already sent the proposal for setting up a 6000 km gas highway that will attract an investment of about Rs 30,000 crore and to arrange the funds for the gas highway, GAIL has asked for budgetary allocation or putting a cess of 35 paise tp per square metre of gas. Presently 43 per cent of the capacity of about 9000 km of gas pipeline caters to western India and eastern and southern parts together account for 26 per cent of the total capacity that too is confined majorly to power and fertiliser sector. But GAIL has proposed to end the regional and sectoral discrepancy with the gas highway and analysts believe it’s a good move. Meanwhile, with a cess of 35 paise only Rs 1600 crore can be collected. But what is important here is that GAIL is already expanding its 7000 km pipeline by another 7000-8000 km and if the government nominates GAIL for another 6000 km gas highway, the gas utility will become one of the biggest players, as far as gas transporting is concerned.