Indian Oil diverting its LNG tankers for transportation of liquid medical oxygen to states

Indian Oil is diverting its Liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers for transportation of Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) to states amid a shortage of medical oxygen in the country due to surging coronavirus cases.

The first such tanker is loaded with an LMO supply for Patna.

The Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas informed further that the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) will convert 29 unused LNG tankers into medical-grade oxygen carriers within the next week.

Further, the ministry informed in a tweet, "Guided by PM Narendra Modi's call to address issues related to last mile deliveries of medical oxygen, Indian Oil Corporation Limited is diverting brand new LNG Tankers for faster and reliable transportation of LMO to states. The first such LNG Tanker is loaded with LMO supply for Patna, Bihar."

"IOCL is in the process of converting 29 such unused LNG Tankers from its fleet into medical-grade oxygen carriers within the next week to address gaps between production and distribution of oxygen and also ensure smooth supplies. #OxygenForAll #SanjeevExpress", it said in another tweet.

Meanwhile, to address the shortage of oxygen tankers in the country, the Union Government today has imported 20 cryogenic tankers of 10 metric tonnes (MT) and 20 MT capacity and allocated them to States.

( With inputs from ANI )