The first cross border petroleum pipeline in South Asia will start commercial operation by the first week of August following virtual inauguration of the Nepal-India bilateral project by the heads of the states.
The Motihari-Amlekhgunj oil pipeline project has been completed and is awaiting its formal inauguration by the Prime Ministers of Nepal KP Sharma Oli and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, according to the state oil monopoly. “The two Prime Ministers will officially open the fuel trade via the pipeline through the remote control, though the date for the official inauguration is yet to be fixed.”
Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), the two governments are working to ensure that inauguration of the project takes place in the first week of August. “The virtual inauguration of the project will be done through video conferencing, where the two prime ministers will press a button in New Delhi and Kathmandu, resulting in opening of the valve of the petroleum pipeline,” the petroleum monopoly informed.
First proposed in 1996, the Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline memorandum of understanding was signed with Nepal Oil Corporation at the junior executive level a year later. In 2004, the two sides upgraded the agreement to the chief executive level. However, due to a number of legal hurdles, the project failed to take off. The project finally moved closer to reality during Indian PM Modi’s visit to Kathmandu in 2014. The then supply minister Sunil Bahadur Thapa and Indian state minister for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan signed an agreement on August 24, 2015 on constructing the Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline within 30 months, though the project was delayed due to devastating earthquake. But still Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline is the only mega project completed in time, apart from being the bilateral project completed in time.
“The NOC and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) today successfully tested the Motihari-Amlekhguni pipeline project,” the NOC said, adding that the IOC – through its refinery in Motihari – had supplied diesel to NOC’s Amlekhgunj-based depot yesterday, and received it today. “However, NOC will unload only 1,000 kilolitres of the 3,100-kilolitre diesel supplied by IOC via the pipeline to test the newly constructed tanks at Amlekhgunj.”
Though the project was estimated to cost Rs 2.75 billion Indian Currency (IC) with Indian government injecting Rs 2 billion IC and Rs 750 million IC by NOC and the remaining Indian grants, the final project cost escalated to almost Rs 3.25 billion IC. “The 69.2-km-long pipeline was completed with the budget of Rs 5.18 billion,” the NOC added. Of the Motihari- Amlekhgunj pipeline’s total length, 36.2 km lies within Nepali territory. The fuel pumping facilities will be located in Motihari, India. It is estimated that 300 kilolitres to 350 kiloliters of diesel can be supplied through the pipeline per hour.
The cross border petro pipeline is going to save NOC’s around Rs 2 billion – in transportation and ensure smooth supply of diesel, even during the strikes in Terai – helping it to bring down the petroleum price in the domestic market.
Under the first phase of the project, a pipeline will be laid from Raxaul to Amlekhgunj. In the second phase, it will be extended to Kathmandu.
Though some of the energy experts claim that the cross border pipeline will make Nepal further dependent on India because Nepal has to deal with a single company, officials say the pipeline will be a boon for the country, not only in reducing transportation costs and eliminating the hassles of hiring tanker trucks but also running operation during strikes that often hamper petroleum imports through the Indian border. “Most importantly, the pipeline will end fuel adulteration,” the NOC claimed, adding that fuel adulteration is a major problem. “The Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology reports revealed that the diesel sold in the valley is heavily adulterated.”
The Motihari-Amlekhgunj oil pipeline project has been completed and is awaiting its formal inauguration by the Prime Ministers of Nepal KP Sharma Oli and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, according to the state oil monopoly. “The two Prime Ministers will officially open the fuel trade via the pipeline through the remote control, though the date for the official inauguration is yet to be fixed.”
Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), the two governments are working to ensure that inauguration of the project takes place in the first week of August. “The virtual inauguration of the project will be done through video conferencing, where the two prime ministers will press a button in New Delhi and Kathmandu, resulting in opening of the valve of the petroleum pipeline,” the petroleum monopoly informed.
First proposed in 1996, the Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline memorandum of understanding was signed with Nepal Oil Corporation at the junior executive level a year later. In 2004, the two sides upgraded the agreement to the chief executive level. However, due to a number of legal hurdles, the project failed to take off. The project finally moved closer to reality during Indian PM Modi’s visit to Kathmandu in 2014. The then supply minister Sunil Bahadur Thapa and Indian state minister for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan signed an agreement on August 24, 2015 on constructing the Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline within 30 months, though the project was delayed due to devastating earthquake. But still Motihari-Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline is the only mega project completed in time, apart from being the bilateral project completed in time.
“The NOC and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) today successfully tested the Motihari-Amlekhguni pipeline project,” the NOC said, adding that the IOC – through its refinery in Motihari – had supplied diesel to NOC’s Amlekhgunj-based depot yesterday, and received it today. “However, NOC will unload only 1,000 kilolitres of the 3,100-kilolitre diesel supplied by IOC via the pipeline to test the newly constructed tanks at Amlekhgunj.”
Though the project was estimated to cost Rs 2.75 billion Indian Currency (IC) with Indian government injecting Rs 2 billion IC and Rs 750 million IC by NOC and the remaining Indian grants, the final project cost escalated to almost Rs 3.25 billion IC. “The 69.2-km-long pipeline was completed with the budget of Rs 5.18 billion,” the NOC added. Of the Motihari- Amlekhgunj pipeline’s total length, 36.2 km lies within Nepali territory. The fuel pumping facilities will be located in Motihari, India. It is estimated that 300 kilolitres to 350 kiloliters of diesel can be supplied through the pipeline per hour.
The cross border petro pipeline is going to save NOC’s around Rs 2 billion – in transportation and ensure smooth supply of diesel, even during the strikes in Terai – helping it to bring down the petroleum price in the domestic market.
Under the first phase of the project, a pipeline will be laid from Raxaul to Amlekhgunj. In the second phase, it will be extended to Kathmandu.
Though some of the energy experts claim that the cross border pipeline will make Nepal further dependent on India because Nepal has to deal with a single company, officials say the pipeline will be a boon for the country, not only in reducing transportation costs and eliminating the hassles of hiring tanker trucks but also running operation during strikes that often hamper petroleum imports through the Indian border. “Most importantly, the pipeline will end fuel adulteration,” the NOC claimed, adding that fuel adulteration is a major problem. “The Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology reports revealed that the diesel sold in the valley is heavily adulterated.”
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