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GAIL (India) Limited, on Friday, achieved a milestone as its City Gas Distribution (CGD) network in East Singhbhum GA signed a landmark Gas Sales Agreement (GSA) with Tata Steel Ltd.
As per a media release, this agreement is the first onboarding of the largest Industrial customer across all of GAIL's CGD operations in all Geographical Areas (GAs), including Varanasi, Patna, Ranchi, East Singhbhum, Cuttack, and Khordha, since the commencement of these networks. "As per the agreement signed, Tata Steel's Combi-Mill plant based in Jamshedpur will be supplied with natural gas, starting initially at 31,000 SCMD (standard cubic meters/day), going to 43,000 SCMD in the future," the release said. This marks a milestone in enhancing industrial sustainability in the state of Jharkhand, demonstrating how cleaner fuels can facilitate large-scale industrial operations. "This strategic agreement exemplifies GAIL's readiness to support India's industrial sector in cleaner and most efficient energy alternatives, and through this agreement, is another significant opportunity for GAIL in India's energy transition journey," the release concluded. India's Piped Natural Gas (PNG) connections grew nearly sixfold, from 0.254 crore in 2014 to 1.47 crore in 2025, as per a report by PIB. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) stations increased more than tenfold, from 738 to 7720 in the same period. City Gas Distribution (CGD) network expanded from 53 to 307 for specific geographical areas. CGD coverage jumped from 13.27 per cent to nearly 100 per cent population-wise and from 5.58 per cent to approximately 100 per cent area-wise by 2025. Operational natural gas pipelines also rose from 15,340 km in 2014 to 25,124 km in 2025. The number of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LNG) terminals doubled from 4 to 8, and their capacity rose from 22 Million Metric Tons Per Annum (MMTPA) to 52.7 MMTPA. The report stated that the National Policy on Biofuels, amended in 2022, targeted 20 per cent ethanol blending by 2025-26. Ethanol blending increased from 1.53 per cent in 2014 to 18.5 per cent in 2025. Ethanol procurement surged from 38 crore litres in 2014 to 440.74 crore litres in 2025. (ANI)
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