(ET)
The oil ministry will soon approach the Cabinet for about Rs 6,000 crore in viability gap funding (VGF) for the proposed gas grid in the northeast. Indradhanush Gas Grid Ltd (IGGL), a joint venture of Indian OilNSE 2.49 %, ONGC, GAIL, Oil India, and Numaligarh Refinery, plans to lay 1,600-kilometre northeast gas grid at a cost of about RS 10,000 crore. IGGL would need about 60% funding support from the central government for this, an official said. Without funding support from the Centre, state firms will find it hard to launch the project, the official said, adding that the project was crucial to building the national gas grid and the economic development of the northeast region. The government had in 2016 provided a capital grant of Rs 5,176 crore, or 40% of the project cost, for 2,500-km-long Jagdishpur-Haldia and Bokaro-Dhamra Gas Pipeline (JHBDPL) project, which GAIL is currently executing.
