Cabinet approves gas pooling for 30 urea units

The Union Cabinet today approved gas pooling for 30 urea manufacturing units in the country, communications minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today said.

The move would allow sale of gas at a composite price arrived at by pooling gas from cheaper domestic and more expensive imported sources.

“This is a historic moment for farmers,” Prasad said, while making the announcement.

The minister also announced the government would set up a 2000 km gas pipeline between Haldia (West Bengal) and Jagdishpur (Uttar Pradesh) at a cost of Rs 10,000 crore and said fertilizer plants in Gorakhpur (UP) and Barauni (Bihar) would be revived and connected to the above pipeline.

Welcoming the decision, Satish Chander DG, Fertilizer Association, said the move is in the right direction but it will not mean much as far as the prices of urea are concerned.