In this article, You will read Pipelines and Role of Pipeline in regional development – for UPSC IAS (Transport, Communication, and Trade).

Pipelines

  • Pipelines are the most convenient and suitable mode of transportation for petroleum products and gases in bulk for longer distances.
  • The products which can be transported through pipelines are
    • Petroleum products- Crude oil, jet fuel
    • Liquid products- Water, Anhydrous Ammonia
    • Gases- Natural Gas, LPG, butane
    • Solid products- Coal, mineral, solid wastes,

Advantages and disadvantages of Pipelines

  • Advantages
    • Pipelines consume very little energy in comparison to another mode of transportation
    • Transit losses are minimal in transportation through pipelines.
    • The running cost of the materials through pipelines is very low. It is less than 10 times than surface transportation.
    • The wastage of the transportation material is very less. E.g. slurry of coal and iron ore
    • Pipelines can be laid through difficult terrains as well as underwater which is not possible in another mode of transportation.
    • Pipelines are not affected by seasonal variations and climatic hostilities like a flood, snowfall, rainfall, etc.
    • Examples:
      • Bailadila produces high-grade ore which was exported through Vishakhapatnam Port. Now a 270 km long slurry pipeline is constructed to bring the ore from the Bailadila mine to Vizag Steel Plant
      • At Kudremukh iron ore is mined on large scale for export, which is exported from New Mangalore port, where it is transported through 70 km slurry pipelines.
      • Rock phosphate concentration from Maltos mines to Debari smelter plant in Rajasthan is transported through the slurry pipeline.
    • Pipelines are safe, accident-free, and environmentally friendly.
    • It brings about industrial development in adjoining areas. E.g. establishment of fertilizer industries at the places of gas pipeline (Jagdishpur, Shahjahapur, etc).
  • Disadvantages
    • Pipelines are prone to distortions in case of earthquakes. It is very difficult to find leakages and cracks in case of distortions.
    • The initial cost of lying of pipelines is very high. Though the cost of maintenance is low.
    • The Pipelines face security threats from terrorist organizations, which could jeopardize a country’s economy, especially in the case of Transboundary pipeline like the TAPI pipeline which was recently in news faced threats from Pakistan and Afghanistan based terrorist groups, the oil pipelines in the northeast are often blasted by anti-nationalist elements.
    • The capacity cannot be increased once the pipelines are laid. For increasing the capacity the new pipelines need to be laid.
    • The repair of pipelines is also very difficult, particularly in case of leakages; detection of leakages is quite difficult.

Major pipelines of India

Major pipelines of India

Naharkatia-Nunmati-Barauni Pipeline

  • This was the first pipeline constructed in India to bring crude oil from Naharkatia oilfield to Nunmati. It was constructed by Oil India limited for transporting crude oil from Naharkatia oil field in Assam to Barauni refinery via Noonamati oil refinery
  • It also has a number of subsidiary pipelines to increase capacity which are given below:
    • Nunmati-Siliguri pipeline transport oil from Nunmati (Guwahati) in Assam to Siliguri in West Bengal.
    • Lakwa-Rudrasagar-Barauni pipeline has been constructed to carry crude oil from Lakwa and Rudrasagar to oil refinery at Barauni.
    • Barauni-Haldia pipeline, completed in 1966, transports refined petroleum products to Haldia port and bring back crude oil to Barauni refinery. We again sen refined product to Haldia from where it is exported.
    • Barauni-Kanpur pipeline carries refined petroleum products from Barauni to Kanpur.
    • Nunmati-Bangaigaon section of this pipe is used to transport raw materials for the Bongaigaon petrochemical complex.
    • Haldia-Rajbandh-Maurigram pipeline has been constructed to meet the requirements of the southern part of West Bengal.
Naharkatia Nunmati Barauni Pipeline

Mumbai High-Mumbai pipeline

  • This is a 210 km long double-pipeline that connects Mumbai with Mumbai High. It provides facilities for transporting crude oil and natural gas.
image

Ankleshwar-Kayoli Pipeline

  • Ankleshwar-Koyali pipeline was completed in 1965. It transports crude oil from Ankleshwar oilfield to Koyali refinery.
Ankleshwar Kayoli Pipeline

Salaya-Koyali-Mathura Pipeline

  • An important pipeline has been laid from Salaya in Gujarat to Mathura in U.P. via Viramgram.
  • This is a 1,256 km long pipeline which supplies crude oil to refineries at Koyali and Mathura. From Mathura, it has been extended to the oil refinery at Panipat in Haryana and further to Jalandhar in Punjab. It has an offshore terminal for imported crude oil.
Salaya-Koyali-Mathura Pipeline

Mathura-Delhi-Panipat-Ambala-Jalandhar pipeline

  • It transports refined products of Mathura & Panipat refineries to market centers of N.W India.
Mathura-Delhi-Panipat-Ambala Jalandhar pipeline

Haldia-Kolkata pipeline

  • It transports refined petroleum products to Kolkata.
IOCL Bathinda

Hazira-Bijaypur-Jagdishpur (HBJ) gas pipeline

  • This is the longest gas pipeline of India. It is a 1750 km long gas pipeline that passes through Hazira, Kawas (both in Gujrat), Bijapur (M.P), Auriya (UP), Jagdishpur (U.P), Saharanpur (U.P), Aonla (UP), Babrala (U.P), Anta (Rajasthan), Sawai Madhopur (Rajasthan), Kota(Rajasthan).
  • It carries 18 million cubic meters of gas every day to three powerhouses at Kawas (Gujarat), Anta (Rajasthan), and Auraiya (U.P.) and to six fertilizer plants at Bijapur, Sawai Madhopur,. Jagdishpur, Shahjahanpur, Aonla, and Babrala.
  • Each of the fertilizer plants has a capacity of producing 1,350 tonnes of ammonia per day. The construction of this pipeline is a unique engineering feat and has been completed at an estimated cost of over Rs. 1,700 crore. The pipeline passes through 343.7 km long rocky area, 56.3 km long forest area, besides crossing 29 railway crossings and 75 big and small rivers.
  • This is the world’s largest underground pipeline and has brought about a big transformation in the economy of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. It has been extended up to Delhi so that enough gas is made available to meet the growing demand of the capital city.
Hazira Bijaypur Jagdishpur HBJ gas pipeline

Jamnagar-Loni LPG Pipeline

  • This 1,269 km-long pipeline has been constructed by the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL). It connects Jamnagar in Gujarat to Loni near Delhi in U.P. and passes through the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, and U.P. This is the longest LPG pipeline in the world.
  • It is like transporting 3.5 lakh LPG gas cylinders across 1,269 km every day and its capacity is being increased to 5.0 lakh cylinder per day. It will result in a net saving of Rs. 500 crore per year by eliminating road tanker movement and lead to the reduction of about 10,000 tonnes of pollutant emission per year.
  • This is the first time that a cross-country pipeline has been used to transport LPG adding to the availability of supplies, safety in transportation, and wider distribution. LPG is received at various points along the route for bottling in Ajmer and Jaipur (Rajasthan), Piyala (Haryana), Madanpur Khadar (Delhi), and Loni (U.P.). Phase-I of the pipeline was completed in 2001 and Phase-II was completed in 2003.
Jamnagar Loni LPG Pipeline

Kandla-Bhatinda Pipeline

  • This 1,331 km long pipeline is proposed to be constructed for transporting crude oil to the proposed refinery at Bhatinda. It is to be constructed by IOC at the estimated cost of Rs. 690 crore.
Kandla Bhatinda Pipeline

Role of pipeline in regional development

  • Pipelines are the best means for industrial dispersal in backward and depressed regions. It acts as a growth pole giving rise to immense horizontal industrial clustering by attracting various petrochemical and fertilizer industries. The development of the HBJ gas pipeline has given rise to the construction of three power plants at kawas (Guj), Anta (Raj), and Auraiya (U.P), and Six fertilizer plants namely Bijapur (M.P), Sawai Madhopur (Raj), Jagadishpur, Shahjahanpur, Aonla, Babrala(UP).
  • The pipelines also link the geography of production with the geography of consumption, thereby leading to economic development and regional growth. The location of oil refineries and petrochemical complex’s in economically backward regions like Barauni, Mathura, etc. has also been possible because of the pipeline transport.

List of Refineries in India

No.RefineryStateLocation
1Jamnagar RefineryGujaratJamnagar (SEZ)
2Jamnagar RefineryGujaratJamnagar (DTA)
3Nayara Energy RefineryGujaratVadinar
4Kochi RefineryKeralaKochi
5Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals LimitedKarnatakaMangalore
6Paradip RefineryOdishaParadip
7Panipat RefineryHaryanaPanipat
8Gujarat RefineryGujaratVadodara
9Mumbai RefineryMaharashtraMumbai
10Mumbai RefineryMaharashtraMumbai
11Guru Gobind Singh RefineryPunjabBathinda
12Manali RefineryTamil NaduChennai
13Visakhapatnam RefineryAndhra PradeshVisakhapatnam
14Mathura RefineryUttar PradeshMathura
15Haldia RefineryWest BengalHaldia
16Bina RefineryMadhya PradeshBina
17Barauni RefineryBiharBarauni
18Numaligarh RefineryAssamNumaligarh
19Bongaigaon RefineryAssamBongaigaon
20Guwahati RefineryAssamGuwahati
21Nagapattnam RefineryTamil NaduNagapattinam
22Digboi RefineryAssamDigboi
23Tatipaka RefineryAndhra PradeshTatipaka
24Barmer RefineryRajasthanBarmer
important refineries in india
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Shivam Gaur

thank u so much..

Surya

Very helpful for my project thank you with the help of this article I got a clear clarity of pipelines in India and development of it

Kiran Rahana

Thank you so much 🙏🏼

Jaanu

Thanku very very much.. if possible update the article with recent developments also