'IGL wants to be leader in LNG space'

State-run Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) will set up 100 liquefied natural gas (LNG) stations by FY30 and strengthen efforts to establish compressed natural gas (CNG) to LNG conversion plants for servicing difficult terrains, Managing Director KAMAL KISHORE CHATIWAL tells Subhayan Chakraborty & Shreya Jai in an interview at the company's Delhi headquarters.

- KAMAL KISHORE CHATIWAL

IGL has announced multiple plans to ramp up its LNG portfolio.

What is the thinking behind this? We want to be a leader in the LNG space. We are targeting to set up 6-7 LNG dispensing stations nationwide in the current financial year, and our long-term vision is to have 100 LNG stations by FY30. We have already commissioned the first LNG dispensing station in Ajmer.

There is demand in Delhi. As part of our partnership with a leading public-sector company, IGL is building a captive unit at its Noida depot. It wants to decarbonise its trucks, which will ply as soon as the facility is commissioned.

What is the status of your LNG to CNG conversion plants?

We believe there is a synergy between CNG and LNG. For the conversion plants, we have brought out an expression of interest. We now have 500 CNG stations in Delhi. For instance, a station making 20,000 kg of CNG sales per day has seen sales come down to 10,000 kg. This presents a potential for us to use the compression capacity in that station. We can liquefy a high-pressure gas. We already have a highly compressed gas, so our capex goes down.

In hilly areas, pipelines are uneconomical in terms of cost and have safety issues. So, we plan to deliver gas via pipeline to a CNG compression facility, liquefy it, and take the LNG to hills, inaccessible or sparsely populated areas. Right now, it costs ₹14-15 crore to set up a conversion unit, as opposed to the hundreds of crores it takes to lay down pipelines.