GAIL’s Big Plans: New Projects and Green Goals Announced by Chairman Sandeep Kumar Gupta
GAIL (India) Ltd. held its 40th Annual General Meeting (AGM) for the fiscal year 2023-24. Chairman Sandeep Kumar Gupta shared exciting news about the company’s future projects and goals.
New Petrochemical Projects
Gupta announced that GAIL is exploring the feasibility of setting up a world-scale greenfield ethane cracker. He expressed optimism about the growth of GAIL’s petrochemical business, highlighting several new projects:
- 500 KTA PDHPP Project at Usar
- 60 KTA Poly-propylene plant at Pata
- 1,250 KTA PTA plant at GMPL, Mangaluru
- 50 KTA Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) Project at Usar
Expanding Natural Gas Network
GAIL has maintained its leadership in the natural gas sector with a network of 16,271 km of pipelines. The company is actively laying approximately 3,400 km of new pipelines to complete the National Gas Grid (NGG). Gupta emphasized the network’s nearly 100% availability, ensuring a steady gas supply nationwide.
New LNG Supply Agreements
To ensure supply security, GAIL has signed two 10-year LNG supply agreements starting in 2026:
- 1 MMTPA from Vitol Asia Pte Ltd, Singapore
- 0.5 MMTPA from ADNOC Gas, UAE
Additionally, GAIL’s volume of 4.5 MMTPA is renewed under an LNG SPA signed between Qatar Energy LNG and PLL, with supplies commencing in 2028 for 20 years. GAIL has also chartered a long-term LNG vessel, GAIL Urja, and entered into a 14-year Time Charter Party agreement for a newly built LNG carrier, starting in early 2025.
City Gas Distribution Expansion
GAIL’s joint venture company, Mahanagar Gas Limited, acquired new geographical areas in Maharashtra and Karnataka. GAIL, along with its group companies, is now the largest City Gas Distribution (CGD) operator in India, authorized in 72 Geographical Areas across the nation. In FY24, GAIL added 11.06 lakh PNG connections and 422 CNG stations, totaling approximately 83.4 lakh PNG customers and 2,770 CNG stations.
Green Initiatives and Net Zero Target
Gupta announced that GAIL has advanced its Net Zero target by five years, aiming to achieve 100% reduction in Scope 1 & Scope 2 emissions by 2035. The company has installed India’s first MW scale Green Hydrogen electrolyzer in Vijaipur, Madhya Pradesh, with a capacity of producing 4.3 TPD of Hydrogen using renewable power.
Doubts Revealed
GAIL -: GAIL stands for Gas Authority of India Limited. It is a big company in India that deals with natural gas.
Annual General Meeting -: An Annual General Meeting (AGM) is a yearly gathering of a company’s interested shareholders. They discuss the company’s performance and future plans.
ethane cracker -: An ethane cracker is a big machine that breaks down ethane, a type of gas, into smaller parts to make useful chemicals.
petrochemical projects -: Petrochemical projects involve making chemicals from oil and gas. These chemicals are used to make many everyday products like plastics and medicines.
natural gas pipeline network -: A natural gas pipeline network is a system of pipes that transport natural gas from one place to another, like from a gas field to homes and factories.
LNG supply agreements -: LNG stands for Liquefied Natural Gas. Supply agreements are deals made to buy and sell this gas in its liquid form, which is easier to transport.
Net Zero emissions -: Net Zero emissions mean that the company will balance the amount of greenhouse gases it emits with the amount it removes from the atmosphere, aiming to have no overall impact on the climate.
MW scale Green Hydrogen electrolyzer -: A MW scale Green Hydrogen electrolyzer is a large machine that uses electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen produced is called ‘green’ because the electricity comes from renewable sources like wind or solar power.
PNG connections -: PNG stands for Piped Natural Gas. These connections deliver natural gas directly to homes and businesses through pipes.
CNG stations -: CNG stands for Compressed Natural Gas. CNG stations are places where vehicles can fill up with this type of fuel, which is cleaner than petrol or diesel.
FY24 -: FY24 stands for Fiscal Year 2024. It is a one-year period that companies use for accounting and financial purposes, usually starting from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024.