Chief minister inaugurates LCNG plant at Kochuveli

Thiruvananthapuram: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has inaugurated the liquefied compressed natural gas (LCNG) station at Kochuveli in the presence of the minister for industries P Rajeev.
The LCNG station was built by AG&P Pratham as part of the city gas project to provide piped natural gas connections to households in the city.
Another LCNG plant was also inaugurated by the chief minister at Cherthala, Alappuzha. The managing director and CEO of AG&P Pratham Abhilesh Gupta was also present online during the function.
“The state government is committed to strengthening the gas distribution infrastructure across the state and transforming Kerala into a clean energy state. We welcome companies like AG&P Pratham whose continued investments/efforts will help achieve this vision and promote increased adoption of natural gas among citizens,” said the chief minister while inaugurating the plants.
The Kochuveli station will eventually cover 9,500 vehicles and benefit 80,000 households, and 1,000 commercial establishments. As per the proposed plan, nearly 3,000 kms of Medium-density polyethylene pipes will be laid across the city to provide gas connection to over two-lakh households by 2029 March.
The agency so far covered a distance of 52 kms and has connected as many as 5,460 houses at Vettucaud, Shanghumugham, Sreevaraham and Chaka. By March 2023, the agency is expected to cover 137 more kms by connecting nearly 28,000 households in Vettucaud, Shangumugham, Perunthanni, Palkulangara and Chaka areas.
“Public will get gas at Rs 60 per cubic meter, which is 20 to 30% less than the price of gas in the market now. The works are progressing at a faster pace and we will be able to cover more houses than what we actually targeted when the work started in July last year. The project is also progressing in Kollam and Alappuzha as well,” said Ranjith Ramachandran, vice-president of AG&P Pratham.