Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) offered seven geographical areas (GAs) of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim, Union territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh under the latest city gas distribution (CGD) bidding round for retailing of CNG to automobiles and piping the fuel to household kitchens and industries

Oil Regulator Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) on Friday offered for bidding CNG retailing licences in seven areas mostly in North East and Jammu and Kashmir that are expected to see as much as USD 4.5 billion investment in setting up gas infrastructure, as the Government looks to expand the reach of environment-friendly fuel in the country.
In the latest city gas distribution (CGD) bidding round, the Board presented seven geographical areas (GAs) for consideration: Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim, the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir, and Ladakh. These GAs would be responsible for retailing CNG to automobiles and piping the fuel to homes, businesses, and industries.

Once approval from the Election Commission has been received, Mizoram, where Assembly elections have been declared, will also be included.

Launching the bid round, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said after this round, gas will be taken to islands which are the only uncovered areas.
There are 300 authorised GAs by PNGRB covering around 88 per cent of the country’s geographical area and 98 per cent of its population.
On successful completion, India’s entire area and population will be covered except Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.

On 11 January , the bid period for the latest round will expire, and the regions will likely be awarded within two to three weeks.

An investment of USD 4.5 billion is anticipated for the development of city gas infrastructure in the areas being bid out, according to a presentation delivered during the launch.

There are 1.15 crore natural gas-piped kitchens in the nation. In the nation, there are about 5,900 CNG stations.

About 35 million standard cubic metres of gas, or 22 per cent of all gas used in the nation, are utilised by the city gas sector each day.

PNGRB authorised 67 GAs for the development of the CGD network in the nation during the most recent 11th and 11A CGD bidding cycle.

As per Puri, in order to encourage the use of natural gas, the government has prioritised building out the city gas distribution (CGD) network, expanding the national gas grid pipeline, and installing LNG terminals.

(PTI)