As per reports, Gujarat will become the first state to be completely covered under the pipe gas distribution network after the ninth round of bidding, which will see a quarter of the country brought under the network.
Proud moment for #Gujarat
Gujarat to become 1st Indian state with 100% piped gas networkhttps://t.co/TigxApeeeY— Ganesh चन्द्र जायसवाल (@ganeshmahnar) June 14, 2018
The Western areas of the state are already 84.31 percent covered under the city gas distribution (CGD) network, and will see the remaining area covered after the ninth round of bidding which opened last month, Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Chairperson D K Sarraf said here today. Following this, the country’s overall penetration will go up in terms of geographical areas, from existing 11 percent to 24 percent, covering 29 percent population from existing 19 percent, he said.
After the bidding, which is already underway, 100 percent of the population in Gujarat will be covered under the CGD network which as of now is already 87.37 percent covered.
Sarraf said that to promote natural gas consumption in kitchens and for vehicles in the state, CGD has been given the priority for access to cheaper domestic gas, while others would have to depend on imported gas which is costlier as compared to domestic gas. CGD sector is currently consuming 20 million cubic meters natural gas per day, with the demand expected to multiply as penetration grows, he said.
In 2016, City Gas distribution player, Gujarat Gas Limited has joined hands with the Gujarat Housing Board (GHB) to provide piped natural gas (PNG) to homes built under the ‘Chief Minister’s Housing Scheme’ as well as other housing schemes of GHB. In order to connect other cities and new residential colonies being set up by GHB, the state government in the year 2016 started expanding the gas pipeline network across the state so as to increase the usage of natural gas by consumers and thereby reduce pollution.
In the latest bidding round, 14 additional districts, including 6 complete districts and the rest in parts, will be covered under the CGD network in the state. The districts include Gir Somnath, Morbi, Mahisagar, Narmada, Kheda, Junagadh, and Tapi.
Piped Natural gas (PNG) is used for Domestic, Commercial and Industrial Consumption. PNG has several distinctions to its credit of being a pollution-free fuel, economical and safer fuel being few of them. it is the most eco-friendly form of fuel. PNG is one of the cleanest burning fuels and helps improve the quality of air. When natural gas burns completely, it gives out carbon dioxide and water vapour. These are the very components that we give out while breathing so it is completely safe.
In the year 2007, Government of India established Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) under the PNGRB Act 2006. Under the Act, PNGRB grants the authorization to the entities for developing a City Gas Distribution (CGD) network (including PNG network) in a specified Geographical Area (GA) of the country. CGD sector has four distinct segments – Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) predominantly used as auto-fuel, and Piped Natural Gas (PNG) used in domestic, commercial and Industrial segments. Until the end of last year, the country was having about 16470 Km long Natural Gas pipeline network in operation.
