Four new oxygen plants planned to meet demand

Noida: In a bid to meet the shortage of medical oxygen in the city, four new oxygen plants have been planned at different hospitals to tide over the crisis, said officials aware of the matter

Noida: In a bid to meet the shortage of medical oxygen in the city, four new oxygen plants have been planned at different hospitals to tide over the crisis, said officials aware of the matter.

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The pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants, which separate and retrieve oxygen from ambient air, are expected to start operations from June, said officials.

“We are arranging oxygen through different channels but the demand is still high. So four new oxygen plants have been planned at the Super Speciality Paediatric Hospital and Post Graduate Teaching Institute (SSPHPGTI) in Sector 30, one at Government Institute of Medical Sciences and two at a Covid hospital in Sector 39. One of the plants at Sector-39 will be made operational by May end,” said additional district magistrate of Gautam Budh Nagar, Diwakar Singh.

According to officials, two PSA plants, each having a capacity of 300 litres per minute, will be developed at the Covid hospital in Sector 39, of which one is being built using funds from the state budget while the other will be constructed with funds collected through corporate social responsibility (CSR). Meanwhile, the PSA plant at the paediatric hospital will have a capacity of 15 cubic metres. “The plant proposed at Government Institute of Medical Science, Greater Noida, will be developed from CSR fund,” said Singh.

“We have received a few proposals of installing an oxygen plant at the institute. However, the work has not been initiated yet. Currently, the demand for oxygen is around 11 kilo litres per day. We are receiving oxygen and also have a liquid oxygen plant installed here. However, a new oxygen plant will be of great help,” said Brig (Dr) Rakesh Gupta, director of Government Institute of Medical Sciences.

Currently, the city faces a shortage of 28.13 metric tonnes (MT) of oxygen per day. Officials said the total demand of oxygen in the city’s hospitals and medical college — both private and public — is around 125 MT while the city is being supplied with 96.87 MT of oxygen.

The city currently requires to refill 1,890 D-type cylinders, each of quantity 0.01 MT and 200 B-type cylinders, each having a quantity 0.0021 MT.