Pipelines are the most convenient and suitable mode of transportation for petroleum products and gases in bulk for longer distances. Transportation by pipelines is a rising development being preferred nowadays for cost-effective projects in the various fields.
Advantages of pipeline transportation

• Energy efficient: Pipelines consume very little energy in comparison to other modes of transportation. Further, the transit losses are minimal in transportation through pipelines.
• Economical construction and maintenance: They have low energy consumption and low maintenance costs. Additionally, they can be built in difficult terrains, under water etc. The running cost of the materials through pipelines is very low. It is 10 times less than surface transportation.
• Transportation of solid materials and future prospects: Nowadays solid minerals are being transported through pipelines too, cutting down on operating and transportation costs considerably. Example: Iron ore in the form of slurry from Kudremukh to Mangalore port, Rock phosphate from Malton mines to Debari smelter plant in Udaipur etc.
• Reduction in accidental charges: Pipelines are safe, relatively accident-free and environmentally friendly.
• Reduces regional disparity: The far inland location of refineries like Barauni, Mathura, Karnal and gas based fertiliser plants at Jagdishpur and other places could be thought of only because of pipelines.

Disadvantages of pipeline transportation

• High initial costs and inability to increase capacity once the pipeline is laid.
• Pipelines are prone to distortions in case of earthquakes. It is very difficult to find leakages and cracks in case of distortions.
• Pipelines face security threats from terrorist organizations, especially in the case of transboundary pipeline like the TAPI pipeline.

As of August, 2022, India had more than 10,000 kms of crude pipeline network, with a capacity of around 147.9 MMTPA. Following are some of the important pipelines in India.

• Naharkatia-Nunmati-Barauni Pipeline: It was the first pipeline constructed in India to bring crude oil from Naharkatia oil field to Nunmati. It has a number of subsidiary pipelines like Nunmati-Siliguri pipeline, Lakwa-Rudrasagar-Barauni pipeline, Barauni-Haldia pipeline, Barauni-Kanpur pipeline etc.
• Mumbai High-Mumbai pipeline: It is a double- pipeline that connects Mumbai with Mumbai High providing facilities for transporting crude oil and natural gas.
• Ankleshwar-Kayoli Pipeline: It transports crude oil from Ankleshwar oilfield to Koyali refinery.
• Salaya-Koyali-Mathura Pipeline: An important pipeline has been laid from Salaya in Gujarat to Mathura in U.P. via Viramgram which supplies crude oil to refineries at Koyali and Mathura.
• Mathura-Delhi Panipat- Ambala-Jalandhar pipeline: It transports refined products Mathura & of Panipat refineries to market centers of N.W. India.
• Haldia-Kolkata pipeline:It transports refined petroleum products to Kolkata.
• Hazira-Bijaypur-Jagdishpur gas pipeline: This is the longest gas pipeline of India that has brought about a big transformation in the economy of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.
• Jamnagar-Loni LPG pipeline: It is the longest LPG pipeline in the world. It is the first time that a cross-country pipeline has been used to transport LPG adding to the availability of supplies, safety in transportation, and wider distribution etc.

Transportation by pipelines is a new development in India. Pipelines have relieved the increasing pressure on the existing surface transport system and can go a long way as the future of transportation of essential materials, especially as India is intending to move towards a gas-based economy. A robust and efficient policy for the same will not only ensure this, but also help in the overall economic growth of the country.