NOC accelerates petroleum storage facility construction process

Bhairahawa, July 3: The Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has accelerated petroleum storage facility construction process at Rohini river bank in Rupandehi.

Construction of embankment at Rohini rivulet, the border of Omsatiya and Rohini rural municipalities, was underway and 70 per cent construction of the embankment has been completed so far, said Enginer Hiramani Khanal. 

He said that construction activities of the embankment have been forwarded at Rohini rivulet by assessing the flood situation of last 50 years.

Rohini rivulet flows in the north and west of the land where the NOC is constructing the storage facility. A retaining wall has been constructed on the north side while gabion wall towards west of the site. 

The NOC is constructing the new storage facility on around 14 bigha of land purchased at Parasi-Bhairahawa road section as the storage capacity of Bhalbari depot is less and it is near the human settlement. 

The new storage facility would sustain petroleum demand of Lumbini Province for 20 days. The NOC has been constructing storage depots at different places of the country to increase storage capacity of petroleum products. 

Project Coordinator Pradeep Yadav explained that the storage tank at the cost of Rs 3 billion. Three tanks having the storage capacity of 2,100 kilolitres diesel, two tanks having the capacity to storing 1,600 kilolitres of petrol, and three tanks having capacity to storing 70 kilolitres of kerosene oil would be constructed. 

After the construction of new storage facility, the Bhalbari depot would be shifted at the bank of Rohini rivulet. Yadav shared that the design of the project would be completed within mid-October. The Kathmandu University is designing the project. The foundation stone of the project would be laid in November and a target has been set to complete the construction within 2083 BS. (RSS)