Page 150 - CW E-Magazine (19-12-2023)

Hydrocarbons

NUCLEAR ENERGY
IOC signs MoU with Heavy Water Board for supply

of natural gas

Indian Oil Corporation Ltd., (IOC) ral gas. Now, with gas supplies being
and the Heavy Water Board (HWB), a resumed, HWB should be in a position
constituent unit of Department of Energy, to meet the heavy water requirements
have signed a Memorandum of Under- of Indian nuclear power programme,
standing (MoU) for the former to supply among others.
natural gas to SPIC Fertilisers’ plant in
Thuthukoodi, Tamil Nadu, which, in turn, The heavy water plant Thuthukoodi
will supply synthesis gas to HWB. employs the ammonia hydrogen mono-
thermal exchange process to produce
IOC Executive Directors, Mr. S. K. nuclear grade heavy water.
Jha and Mr. Shailesh Tiwari, and HWB The operation of Thuthukoodi
Director, Mr. V.V.S.A. Prasad, and heavy water plant has been suspended The plant is integrated with SPIC
Chief Executive, Mr. S. Satyaprakash since 2007 due to failure of SPIC to sup- and the commissioning activity would
were present at the signing ceremony. ply ammonia, due to shortage of natu- start from June 2024.
NET ZERO JOURNEY
Cairn Oil & Gas to develop mangroves plantation

in Surat coast

Cairn Oil & Gas, India’s largest potential carbon sequestration of about per equivalent area. This new associ-
private oil and gas exploration and 62,000-tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO ) ation further builds on the earlier three
2
production company, and a part of over a decade. MoUs signed by Cairn with the State
Vedanta Group, has signed a Memo- Governments of Gujarat, Rajasthan, and
randum of Understanding (MoU) with Mangroves are regarded as the Andhra Pradesh through a mass plantation
the Gujarat Forest Department to de- most impactful natural carbon sinks, of 0.75-mn trees to accelerate decarbonisa-
velop 130 hectares of mangroves, by with studies proving that they seques- tion, which have the potential to sequester
planting 200,000 mangroves in areas ter nearly ten times more carbon than 500,000 tonnes of CO by 2050 – equiva-
2
in the vicinity of the company’s ope- mature tropical forests, in addition to lent to the emissions from about 4,500
rations in Surat. This would lead to a storing three to fi ve times more carbon Indian households annually.

DOMESTIC DEMAND
Fuel demand slips in November from four-month

peak

India’s fuel consumption in (PPAC) showed. It was down about that of gasoline was 0.4% lower than
November fell after hitting a four- 2% compared with the same period a the previous month at 3.13-mt. Sales
month peak in the previous month. year earlier. of liquefi ed petroleum gas (LPG) fell
0.4% to 2.49-mt, while naphtha sales
Total consumption in Novem- Sales of diesel, mainly used by fell by 7.9% to about 1.03-mt. Sales of
ber fell by 2.8% to 18.72-mt from trucks and commercially-run pas- bitumen, used for making roads, fell
19.26-mt in October, data from the senger vehicles, decreased by 1.4% by 9.4% from October, while fuel oil
Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell month-on-month to 7.53-mt, while use declined by 1.3% in November.

150 Chemical Weekly December 19, 2023

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