CBG and its Role in the SATAT Scheme
SATAT Scheme offers Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation, and it’s one of the most innovative initiatives in India for promoting a greener and cleaner future. Several PSU Oil Marketing Companies like IOC, BPCL and HPCL are now inviting EOI (Expression of Interest) from entrepreneurs to set up CBG plants and offer Compressed Biogas (CBG) in the market for use in automotive fuels.
Compressed biogas is a fuel of the future as a renewable and alternative automotive fuel. The composition and energy potential are precisely similar to the commercially available natural gas. Its calorific value, and other properties are identical to CNG (Compressed Natural Gas). India’s potential to produce CBG from various sources is around 62 million tonnes per annum.
CBG can be produced from biomass or waste sources like agricultural residue, municipal solid waste, cattle dung, sugarcane press mud, waste from sewage treatment plants, distillery spent wash and more. Other waste like food waste, rotten vegetables, horticulture waste, poultry or chicken litter, dairy plant waste can also be used to generate biogas.
Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji has mentioned the four pillars for the vision of India’s energy future — energy access, energy efficiency, energy sustainability, and energy security. For India to have its own energy supply and be less dependent on imports, we need more CBG plants set up across the country in a systematic manner. The government has a plan to roll out over 5000 CBG plants — 250 by 2020, 1000 by 2022 and 5000 by 2025. With these plants, there will be around 15 million tonnes of CBG produced per annum, almost 40% of the CBG consumption in India currently — around 44 million tonnes per annum.
Not to mention, the plants will also contribute with employment to over 75,000 people and will be able to produce 50 million tonnes of bio manure for crops as a by-product from the CBG plants. In addition, entrepreneurs who start CBG plants will be able to market and sell the by-products to enhance the returns on investment.
CBG can also be used for industrial and commercial uses and will offer many opportunities for entrepreneurs to sell the CBG produced in their plants. The CBG will be retailed through the CBG dispensing unit that will be set up by the OMCs within a radius of 25 km from the plant. CBG will be transported through cascades of cylinders to the fuel station network of all the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to market is as a green alternative to transport fuel. The CBG supplied under SATAT will also meet the IS 16087:2016 specifications.
Mailhem has been supporting entrepreneurs in setting up CBG plants for many years and has all the experience and expertise to offer end-to-end project support. You can register your EOI for SATAT and get in touch with Mailhem once you receive your LOI to get started on this green initiative.
