After years of delay, work on the 246-km Kochi–Salem underground steel gas pipeline has resumed.

This section of the 429-km pipeline, part of a Rs 600 crore joint venture between Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL), runs through Coimbatore, Erode, and Salem districts in Tamil Nadu. The project had stalled in 2014 due to land acquisition issues but was revived after realigning the route along state highways and district roads to minimize impact on private land. The pipeline has already been completed and commissioned up to Palakkad as of October 2023.

The Kochi–Salem pipeline connects dispatch terminals at Kochi Refinery and Puthuvypeen import terminal to receipt terminals in Udayamperoor, Palakkad, Coimbatore, Erode, and Salem. The Tamil Nadu portion includes the third phase—a 63-km, 12-inch line from Palakkad to Coimbatore—and the fourth phase—a 157-km, eight-inch line from Coimbatore to Salem. Work is currently progressing at a brisk pace to complete the remaining stretches.