Pipeline Network: India and World
What Are Pipelines?
They transport liquids and gases:
- Crude oil
- Petroleum products
- Natural Gas (PNG, CNG)
- Liquified Coal
- Even milk (New Zealand)
✔ Most economical for continuous flow over long distances
✔ Uninterrupted, safe, and cost-effective
❌ High initial investment in infrastructure
Read more aboutPipelines in India
🌍 Examples of Pipeline Networks
| Country/Region | Details |
|---|---|
| U.S.A. | Dense network from Gulf of Mexico to Northeast. Famous line: Big Inch pipeline |
| Russia | Connects oil fields to Europe via Trans-Siberian corridors |
| Turkmenistan | Pipelines to Iran and China |
| India | Haldia-Barauni, Jamnagar-Loni, Kandla–Panipat, and proposed Iran–India pipeline via Pakistan |
🧠 In the U.S., pipelines account for 17% of freight movement per tonne-km.
Major Pipelines of India:
🛢️ 1. Naharkatia–Nunmati–Barauni Pipeline (First in India)
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Transport crude oil from Assam (Naharkatia) to Barauni refinery |
| Length | 1,167 km |
| Timeline | Naharkatia–Nunmati (1962), Nunmati–Barauni (1964), extensions (1966) |
| Key Add-ons | Multiple branches: |
| – Barauni–Kanpur (refined products) | |
| – Barauni–Haldia (2-way crude & product flow) | |
| – Lakwa–Rudrasagar–Barauni (Assam to Bihar) | |
| – Nunmati–Bongaigaon (raw materials for petrochemical plant) | |
| – Haldia–Rajbandh–Maurigram (serving S. Bengal) |
🧠 Significance: Foundation of petroleum transport in Eastern India
🌊 2. Mumbai High–Mumbai–Ankleshwar–Koyali Pipeline
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Crude oil and gas transport from offshore Mumbai High to Koyali refinery |
| Length | ~210 km offshore double pipeline + Ankleshwar–Koyali segment |
| Completion | Ankleshwar–Koyali (1965) |
🧠 Significance: Connects offshore production with Gujarat refinery belt
🛢️ 3. Salaya–Koyali–Mathura–Panipat–Jalandhar Pipeline
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Route | Salaya (Gujarat) → Koyali → Mathura → Panipat → Jalandhar |
| Length | 1,256 km |
| Function | Transport imported and domestic crude oil to refineries |
| Terminal | Offshore terminal at Salaya for imported crude |
🧠 Significance: Key North India supply route; supports Panipat + Mathura refineries
🔥 4. HBJ Gas Pipeline (Hazira–Bijapur–Jagdishpur)
(Also known as HVJ pipeline, expanded into Urja Ganga)
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Built by | GAIL (Gas Authority of India Limited) |
| Length | 1,750 km (original), now expanded to 3,306 km under JHBDPL |
| Purpose | Transport natural gas from Hazira (Gujarat) to Jagdishpur (U.P.) via Bijapur |
| Coverage | Passes through M.P., Rajasthan, U.P., Delhi |
| Beneficiaries | – Power plants at Kawas, Anta, Auraiya |
| – Fertilizer plants at Bijapur, Sawai Madhopur, Shahjahanpur, etc. | |
| Capacity | 18 MCM/day gas; Ammonia production: 1,350 tonnes/day per plant |
| Terrain | Crosses 343 km rocky, 56 km forest, 29 rail lines, 75 rivers |
| Extension | Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga Project (2016–2025) now covers 7 states |
| Status (2025) | 96.6% complete; pending: Durgapur–Haldia, Dhamra–Haldia (to finish by Dec 2025) |
🧠 Significance: India’s first cross-state gas pipeline; world’s largest underground gas pipeline
🪔 5. Jamnagar–Loni LPG Pipeline
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Built by | GAIL |
| Length | 1,269 km (World’s longest LPG pipeline) |
| Year | Phase I: 2001, Phase II: 2003 |
| Route | Jamnagar (Gujarat) to Loni (U.P.), via Rajasthan & Haryana |
| Capacity | 1.7 million tonnes/year (expandable to 2.5 MT) |
| Distribution | LPG bottling at Ajmer, Jaipur, Piyala, Madanpur Khadar, Loni |
| Impact | Saves ₹500 crore annually, avoids 10,000 tonnes pollutants/year |
🧠 Significance: First cross-country LPG pipeline; improved safety, reach & environmental benefit
🛢️ 6. Kandla–Bhatinda Pipeline
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Length | 1,331 km |
| Purpose | Transport crude oil to Bhatinda refinery in Punjab |
| Built by | Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) |
🧠 Significance: Key to oil supply in Northwest India
Summary Table of Major Pipelines
| Pipeline Name | Type | Length (km) | Year | Product |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naharkatia–Nunmati–Barauni | Oil | 1,167 | 1962–66 | Crude + Products |
| Mumbai High–Ankleshwar–Koyali | Oil + Gas | 210+ | 1965 | Crude + Natural Gas |
| Salaya–Koyali–Mathura–Panipat–Jalandhar | Oil | 1,256 | 1970s | Crude |
| Hazira–Bijapur–Jagdishpur (HBJ) | Gas | 1,750 | 1980s | Natural Gas |
| Jamnagar–Loni | LPG | 1,269 | 2001–03 | LPG |
| Kandla–Bhatinda | Oil | 1,331 | 1996 | Crude |
Latest developments (2024-25)
🆕 Jagdishpur–Haldia–Bokaro–Dhamra Pipeline (JHBDPL)
(AKA Urja Ganga)
- Length: 3,306 km (Gujarat to Bengal)
- Benefits: Gas supply to 32 CGDs, 6 fertiliser units
- Key States: Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, U.P., Assam
- Status: 96.6% complete as of 2024; rest by Dec 2025
🆕 Kandla–Gorakhpur LPG Pipeline (KGPL)
- Under Construction: 2,805 km (to be world’s longest LPG pipeline)
- Joint Venture: IOCL (50%), BPCL (25%), HPCL (25%)
- Capacity: 3.75 MMTPA (will meet 25% of India’s LPG demand)
- Commissioning: Mid-2025 expected
International Pipeline
| Pipeline | Countries | Status |
| Motihari–Amlekhgunj Pipeline | India–Nepal | Operational (since 2020) |
| Bangladesh–India Friendship Line | India–Bangladesh | Operational (Mar 2023) |
| TAPI (Gas pipeline) | Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India | Turkmen section complete (2024) |