GAIL postpones FSRU hearing
GAIL and Gaz de France (GdF) have postponed the public hearing for their upcoming Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) for LNG off Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh from July 6 to sometime in August.
Andhra authorities surprised GAIL and GdF on July 3 by announcing imminent elections for 21,491 village councils, forcing them to postpone the public hearing. Local officials who would have conducted the hearing are busy preparing for the elections on July 23, 27 and 31.
"A new date for the hearing will be fixed next week,” says a source. A public hearing is a crucial step for GAIL and GdF to get environment ministry approval for the proposed 3.5m t/y FSRU, estimated to cost Rs1300cr ($260m).
GAIL and GdF are competing with Shell to be the first to set up a FSRU off Kakinada. Worley Parsons submitted a pre-FEED report in April which endorsed the project.
