India Aims for Tenfold Rise in Compressed Bio-Gas Production with Revamped GOBARdhan Scheme
Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri launched the revamped GOBARdhan scheme in New Delhi, aiming to increase India's Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) production more than tenfold.
The scheme targets a major push to expand domestic CBG production, strengthen energy security, and promote a waste-to-wealth economy. It aims to address longstanding challenges faced by the sector, including uncertain returns, inadequate infrastructure, pricing fluctuations, and fragmented policy implementation.
Puri stressed the need to make greater use of locally available biomass, particularly amid rising energy demand and India's continued dependence on imported natural gas. He noted that nearly 50% of India's natural gas requirement is met through imports, with the country's LNG import bill exceeding $13 billion in FY2025-26.
The revamped scheme provides assured off-take, stable pricing, and enhanced financial assistance to improve the commercial viability of CBG projects. Producers will receive capital assistance of up to ₹2 crore per tonne per day (TPD) of installed capacity, along with support for pipeline infrastructure and connectivity to feedstock clusters.
The government has introduced a credit guarantee mechanism to facilitate financing for smaller enterprises. The scheme provides long-term price visibility, with assured gas pricing of around $20-21 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) for 10 years.