The
gove me t
has
ow
positio ed
GOBARdha
as
a
atio al
f amewo k
fo
the
Comp essed
Biogas
i dust y
(AI
image)
Fo
yea s,
I dia
has
spoke
about
the
e o mous
amou t
of
e e gy
locked
i side
its
ag icultu al
esidue,
cattle
du g
a d
o ga ic
waste.
The
challe ge
has
bee
tu i g
that
pote tial
i to
a
comme cially
viable
i dust y.Now,
the
gove me t
is
maki g
o e
of
its
most
se ious
attempts
yet.The
U io
Cabi et
o
August
6
app oved
GOBARdha ,
the
Natio al
Ci cula
Bioe e gy
Scheme,
with
a
total
outlay
of
Rs
23,731
c o e
fo
FY
2026-27
to
FY
2035-36.
The
scheme
has
set
a
ta get
of
te -fold
i c ease
i
domestic
p oductio
of
Comp essed
Biogas
(CBG)
a d
b i gs
togethe
eve ythi g
f om
assu ed
dema d
a d
p ici g
to
capital
assista ce,
pipeli es
a d
c edit
u de
a
si gle
f amewo k.The
idea
sou ds
simple:
take
waste
that
would
othe wise
be
bu t,
dumped
o
left
to
decompose,
a d
p ocess
it
i
a
biogas
pla t
a d
tu
it
i to
fuel
that
ca
be
used
much
like
atu al
gas.
The
i itiative
aims
to
i c ease
atio ‘s
CBG
p oductio
But
the
gove me t’s
ambitio
goes
much
fu the .It
wa ts
villages
to
become
ce t es
of
e e gy
p oductio ,
fa me s
to
become
supplie s
to
the
e e gy
i dust y
a d
o ga ic
waste
to
become
a
eco omic
esou ce
athe
tha
a
disposal
p oblem.
The
questio
is
whethe
the
ew
scheme
ca
solve
the
p oblems
that
have
held
back
I dia’s
CBG
i dust y
fo
yea s.
What
exactly
is
GOBARdha ?
GOBARdha
is
ot
a
e ti ely
ew
idea.The
i itiative
was
o igi ally
lau ched
i
2018
u de
the
Swachh
Bha at
Missio -G amee
as
a
waste-ma ageme t
p og amme.
Its
focus
was
o
co ve ti g
cattle
du g,
kitche
waste,
c op
esidue
a d
othe
o ga ic
mate ial
i to
biogas
a d
bio-slu y,
helpi g
villages
ma age
waste
while
ge e ati g
useful
p oducts.The
2026
ve sio
is
much
b oade .The
gove me t
has
ow
positio ed
GOBARdha
as
a
atio al
f amewo k
fo
the
Comp essed
Biogas
i dust y,
b i gi g
seve al
existi g
measu es
u de
o e
umb ella
a d
placi g
the
scheme
u de
the
mi ist y
of
pet oleum
a d
atu al
gas.These
i clude
the
Sustai able
Alte ative
Towa ds
Affo dable
T a spo tatio
(SATAT)
i itiative,
the
Ma ket
Developme t
Assista ce
scheme
fo
o ga ic
ma u e,
the
Biomass
Agg egatio
Machi e y
scheme,
pipeli e
i f ast uctu e
suppo t
a d
ce t al
fi a cial
assista ce
fo
CBG
pla ts.I
simple
te ms,
the
gove me t
is
movi g
f om
“how
do
we
ma age
o ga ic
waste?”
to
“how
do
we
build
a
i dust y
a ou d
it?”
How
does
waste
become
fuel?
The
p ocess
begi s
with
o ga ic
mate ial
such
as
cattle
du g,
ag icultu al
esidue,
p ess
mud
f om
suga
mills
a d
mu icipal
o ga ic
waste.This
mate ial
is
fed
i to
a
a ae obic
digeste ,
whe e
mic oo ga isms
b eak
it
dow
i
the
abse ce
of
oxyge
a d
p oduce
biogas.
The
aw
biogas
co tai s
metha e
alo g
with
ca bo
dioxide
a d
othe
impu ities.The
gas
is
the
pu ified
to
emove
these
impu ities
a d
comp essed.
Impo ta ce
of
CBG
fo
I dia
The
gove me t
estimates
that
lowe
depe de ce
o
impo ted
fossil
fuels
u de
GOBARdha
could
eve tually
save
mo e
tha
Rs
40,000
c o e
i
fo eig
excha ge.
That
is
a
gove me t
p ojectio
athe
tha
a
gua a teed
savi g,
but
it
illust ates
the
scale
of
the
ambitio .The e
is
also
a
e vi o me tal
a gume t.Ag icultu al
esidue
that
is
ot
eco omically
used
ca
become
a
waste-disposal
p oblem,
while
o ga ic
waste
dumped
i
la dfills
ca
ge e ate
metha e
a d
othe
emissio s.
Co ve ti g
such
mate ial
i to
fuel
gives
it
a
eco omic
value
while
pote tially
educi g
waste- elated
emissio s.Fo
fa me s,
the
att actio
is
a
additio al
ma ket
fo
esidue
a d
du g.Fo
e e gy
compa ies,
it
is
a othe
sou ce
of
domestic
gas.Fo
the
gove me t,
it
is
a
way
of
co ecti g
waste
ma ageme t,
u al
developme t
a d
e e gy
secu ity.
I dia
has
t ied
CBG
befo e.
So
what
we t
w o g?
This
is
whe e
the
GOBARdha
sto y
becomes
mo e
complicated.I dia’s
push
fo
CBG
p oductio
p edates
the
ew
scheme
by
seve al
yea s.The
gove me t
lau ched
SATAT
i
Octobe
2018,
with
a
ambitious
ta get
of
establishi g
5,000
CBG
pla ts
p oduci g
15
millio
to es
a
yea .But
the
i dust y
st uggled
to
scale
at
the
pace
i itially
e visaged.A
2022
eview
by
the
Pa liame ta y
Sta di g
Committee
o
Pet oleum
a d
Natu al
Gas
fou d
that
agai st
the
ta get
of
5,000
pla ts
by
2023-24,
o ly
40
had
bee
set
up
at
that
poi t.
The
committee
also
highlighted
p oblems
with
fi a ci g,
multiple
app ovals,
p ici g
a d
feedstock
availability.O e
of
the
biggest
p oblems
was
that
a
CBG
pla t
eeds
much
mo e
tha
a
piece
of
la d
a d
a
digeste .It
eeds
a
eliable
supply
of
biomass,
equipme t
to
collect
a d
t a spo t
that
biomass,
sto age
facilities,
tech ology,
fi a ci g
a d,
c ucially,
a
buye
fo
the
gas.O e
big
complicatio
with
ag icultu al
esidue
is
that
it
is
seaso al.C op
waste
may
be
available
i
la ge
qua tities
fo
o ly
a
few
mo ths
of
the
yea ,
fo ci g
pla ts
to
i vest
i
sto age
a d
logistics
if
they
wa t
to
ope ate
th oughout
the
yea .
The
pa liame ta y
committee
specifically
flagged
this
issue.Ba sal
estimates
that
I dia
ge e ates
a ou d
230
millio
to es
of
su plus
ag icultu al
esidue
a ually,
suggesti g
that
the
p oblem
is
ot
a
sho tage
of
biomass
but
the
difficulty
of
tu i g
dispe sed
a d
seaso al
supplies
i to
a
eliable,
yea – ou d
feedstock
chai .GOBARdha ‘s
focus
o
biomass
mappi g,
agg egatio
i f ast uctu e
a d
dist ict-level
pla i g
is
the efo e
c itical
to
maki g
pla ts
ope ate
at
high
utilisatio .The e
was
also
a
fi a ci g
p oblem.Ba ks
a d
i vesto s
we e
wa y
of
p ojects
whose
eve ues
depe ded
o
u ce tai
feedstock
supplies
a d
evolvi g
CBG
p ices.
The
committee
oted
co ce s
ove
the
low
i te al
ate
of
etu
of
pla ts
a d
called
fo
mo e
emu e ative
p ici g.This
is
the
gap
GOBARdha
is
ow
attempti g
to
close.Kapil
Ba sal,
pa t e ,
e e gy
t a sitio
a d
deca bo izatio
at
EY-Pa the o
I dia,
told
TOI
that
the
biggest
cha ge
is
that
GOBARdha
tackles
the
e ti e
CBG
value
chai
athe
tha
i dividual
bottle ecks.Ea lie
measu es
add essed
issues
such
as
biomass
agg egatio ,
o ga ic
ma u e,
pipeli es
a d
fi a cial
assista ce
sepa ately,
but
develope s
co ti ued
to
face
u ce tai ty
a ou d
dema d,
p ici g
a d
fi a ci g.“The
secto
is
movi g
f om
a
p oject-led
app oach
to
a
ma ket-led
app oach,
whe e
dema d,
p ici g
a d
fi a ci g
visibility
a e
available
befo e
develope s
i vest,”
Ba sal
said.The
combi atio
of
assu ed
offtake,
a
te -yea
p ici g
f amewo k,
capital
assista ce,
pipeli e
co ectivity
a d
c edit
gua a tees,
he
said,
should
imp ove
p oject
ba kability
a d
give
i vesto s
g eate
co fide ce.
What
cha ges
u de
the
Rs
23,731-c o e
scheme?
The
gove me t
has
st uctu ed
GOBARdha
a ou d
six
majo
compo e ts,
each
desig ed
to
add ess
a
diffe e t
weak ess
i
the
existi g
CBG
ecosystem.
New
cha ges
i t oduced
i
the
upg aded
scheme
1.
Assu ed
dema d
fo
CBGPe haps
the
biggest
cha ge
is
that
p oduce s
will
have
g eate
ce tai ty
that
someo e
will
buy
thei
gas.City
Gas
Dist ibutio
compa ies
will
p ocu e
CBG
i
li e
with
a
otified
obligatio
that
ises
f om
3%
i
FY
2026-27
to
4%
i
FY
2027-28
a d
5%
f om
FY
2028-29
o wa ds
fo
the
CNG
t a spo t
a d
PNG
domestic
segme ts.This
c eates
a
p edictable
dema d
sig al.Fo
i vesto s,
that
matte s
because
a
pla t
is
much
easie
to
fi a ce
whe
the e
is
g eate
cla ity
about
who
will
buy
its
output.
2.
A
stable
p ice
GOBARdha
i t oduces
a
gove me t-backed
CBG
p ice
of
Rs
2,110
pe
MMBTU,
with
a
mi imum
te -yea
f amewo k.The
objective
is
to
give
p oduce s
g eate
eve ue
visibility
a d
make
p ojects
mo e
att active
to
i vesto s
a d
le de s.This
di ectly
add esses
o e
of
the
p oblems
ide tified
i
the
ea lie
CBG
ecosystem:
u ce tai ty
ove
whethe
the
eco omics
of
a
pla t
would
wo k
afte
it
was
built.
3.
Capital
assista ce
Eligible
g ee field
CBG
p ojects
will
eceive
capital
assista ce
of
up
to
Rs
2
c o e
fo
eve y
to e
pe
day
(TPD)
of
i stalled
capacity.Impo ta tly,
the
suppo t
is
ot
est icted
to
the
co e
pla t.It
ca
also
cove
c itical
assets
li ked
to
feedstock
agg egatio ,
o ga ic
ma u e
p ocessi g
a d
value
additio .
B ow field
p ojects
expa di g
existi g
capacity
will
also
be
eligible.That
matte s
because
the
eco omics
of
CBG
depe d
o
the
e ti e
supply
chai ,
ot
just
the
digeste .
4.
Pipeli es
to
co ect
pla ts
with
buye s
A
CBG
pla t
ca ot
be
comme cially
successful
if
its
gas
ca ot
each
the
ma ket.GOBARdha
the efo e
p ovides
fo
cluste -based
a d
sta dalo e
pipeli e
i f ast uctu e
co ecti g
pla ts
with
t u k
pipeli es
a d
City
Gas
Dist ibutio
etwo ks.The
aim
is
to
educe
evacuatio
costs,
imp ove
eliability
a d
expa d
the
ma ket
available
to
p oduce s.
5.
C edit
gua a tees
The
scheme
also
attempts
to
solve
the
fi a ci g
p oblem
th ough
a
dedicated
c edit
gua a tee
mecha ism.By
sha i g
pa t
of
the
le di g
isk,
the
gove me t
hopes
ba ks
will
be
mo e
willi g
to
fi a ce
MSME-based
CBG
p ojects.This
could
b i g
smalle
compa ies,
coope atives,
wome
e t ep e eu s
a d
fi st-time
develope s
i to
a
i dust y
that
has
so
fa
bee
domi ated
by
la ge
playe s
a d
i stitutio al
i itiatives.
6.
A
dist ict-level
ecosystem
fu d
The
fi al
compo e t
focuses
o
the
p oblem
that
ofte
eceives
the
least
atte tio :
whe e
will
the
feedstock
come
f om?The
CBG
Ecosystem
Challe ge
Fu d
will
suppo t
biomass
mappi g,
agg egatio
i f ast uctu e,
dist ict-level
developme t
pla s,
tech ology
adoptio ,
p ocess
imp oveme ts
a d
o ga ic
ma u e
value
additio .The
objective
is
to
build
the
local
ecosystem
a ou d
each
pla t
athe
tha
t eati g
the
pla t
as
a
isolated
piece
of
i f ast uctu e.
What
does
this
mea
fo
fa me s?
The
gove me t’s
la ge
pitch
is
that
fa me s
should
become
pa ticipa ts
i
I dia’s
e e gy
eco omy.C op
esidue
a d
cattle
du g
ca
become
feedstock
fo
CBG
pla ts,
c eati g
pote tial
additio al
i come
fo
fa me s
a d
local
agg egato s.The
be efit
does
ot
stop
with
the
gas.
Scheme
to
empowe
the
fa me s
The
mate ial
left
afte
the
biogas
p oductio
p ocess
ca
be
p ocessed
i to
o ga ic
fe tilise s
such
as
Fe me ted
O ga ic
Ma u e
a d
Liquid
Fe me ted
O ga ic
Ma u e.This
c eates
a
seco d
eve ue
st eam
while
etu i g
ut ie ts
to
ag icultu e.The
gove me t
has
al eady
bee
suppo ti g
this
side
of
the
i dust y
th ough
the
Ma ket
Developme t
Assista ce
scheme.
Togethe ,
these
measu es
a e
i te ded
to
c eate
a
cycle
i
which
ag icultu al
a d
livestock
waste
becomes
a
i put
fo
both
e e gy
a d
ag icultu e.That
is
why
GOBARdha
is
bei g
p ese ted
as
mo e
tha
a
e e gy
scheme.It
is
also
a
u al
i f ast uctu e
a d
waste-ma ageme t
p og amme.
How
big
is
I dia’s
CBG
i dust y
today?
This
is
pe haps
the
most
eveali g
pa t
of
the
gove me t’s
latest
umbe s.As
of
August
6,
the
GOBARdha
U ified
Regist atio
Po tal
had
eco ded
1,908
egiste ed
CBG/Bio-CNG
pla ts.
Of
these,
217
had
bee
commissio ed,
while
a othe
339
we e
u de
co st uctio ,
acco di g
to
the
gove me t.The
umbe s
show
both
the
oppo tu ity
a d
the
p oblem.
Cu e t
capacity
of
CBG
i
the
cou t y
The e
is
co side able
i te est
i
buildi g
CBG
capacity,
but
the
umbe
of
pla ts
actually
ope ati g
emai s
fa
below
the
umbe
egiste ed.The
gove me t
says
the
va ious
i itiatives
i t oduced
ove
ece t
yea s
have
helped
commissio
mo e
tha
200
CBG
pla ts
a d
establish
the
i itial
p oductio
a d
offtake
ecosystem.
GOBARdha
is
ow
i te ded
to
take
that
fou datio
to
a
atio al
scale.I
othe
wo ds,
the
ew
scheme
is
ot
sta ti g
f om
ze o.It
is
a
attempt
to
make
the
existi g
pipeli e
of
p ojects
comme cially
viable
a d
scalable.
Ca
GOBARdha
fi ally
make
CBG
comme cially
viable?
That
emai s
the
biggest
questio .Gove me t
suppo t
ca
educe
the
i itial
cost
of
a
pla t
a d
c eate
a
ma ket
fo
its
gas.
But
it
ca ot
elimi ate
the
fu dame tal
logistical
challe ge
of
collecti g
biomass.Ba sal
cautio ed
that
comme cial
viability
will
still
va y
f om
p oject
to
p oject
because
feedstock
costs,
t a spo tatio
dista ces,
pla t
utilisatio
a d
fi a ci g
costs
will
co ti ue
to
dete mi e
etu s.
“A
p oject
with
eliable
access
to
high-quality
feedstock
ca
achieve
sig ifica tly
bette
pla t
efficie cy
a d
etu s
tha
a
p oject
elyi g
o
dispe sed
o
lowe -yield
biomass
esou ces,”
he
said.A
pla t
located
fa
f om
its
feedstock
sou ce
may
face
high
t a spo tatio
costs.
Ag icultu al
esidue
is
seaso al.
Competi g
uses
fo
biomass
ca
aise
p ices.
Pla ts
also
eed
to
mai tai
eliable
ope atio s
a d
co siste t
gas
quality.These
p oblems
we e
highlighted
by
the
Pa liame ta y
Sta di g
Committee
eve
befo e
the
latest
scheme
was
a ou ced.
It
poi ted
to
the
u eve
availability
of
feedstock,
the
eed
fo
sto age
a d
the
impo ta ce
of
sy ch o isi g
CBG
p oductio
with
the
atio al
gas
g id.This
is
why
the
six
compo e ts
of
GOBARdha
matte
togethe .A
subsidy
without
a
buye
does
ot
solve
the
p oblem.A
buye
without
a
pipeli e
does
ot
solve
the
p oblem.A
pipeli e
without
eliable
feedstock
does
ot
solve
the
p oblem.A d
a
pla t
with
all
th ee
still
eeds
affo dable
fi a ci g
a d
efficie t
ope atio s.GOBARdha
is
effectively
t yi g
to
solve
all
of
these
p oblems
at
the
same
time.
What
could
I dia
get
by
2035-36?
The
gove me t
has
set
a
ambitious
te -yea
visio .It
expects
GOBARdha
to
delive
ea ly
te -fold
g owth
i
domestic
CBG
p oductio ,
att act
la ge
p ivate
i vestme t,
c eate
u al
employme t
a d
expa d
the
o ga ic
fe tilise
eco omy.
It
also
p ojects
lowe
fossil-fuel
use
a d
sig ifica t
eductio s
i
g ee house
gas
emissio s.These
a e
ta gets
a d
gove me t
p ojectio s,
ot
gua a teed
outcomes.The
mo e
impo ta t
test
will
be
whethe
the
umbe
of
ope ati g
pla ts
g ows
alo gside
egist atio s,
whethe
pla ts
emai
viable
afte
i itial
assista ce
a d
whethe
fa me s
a d
local
busi esses
actually
be efit
f om
the
ew
dema d
fo
biomass.If
that
happe s,
GOBARdha
could
cha ge
the
eco omics
of
waste
i
I dia.I stead
of
payi g
to
collect,
t a spo t
a d
dispose
of
o ga ic
waste,
commu ities
could
pote tially
build
local
i dust ies
a ou d
it.
The
bigge
pictu e
I dia’s
CBG
jou ey
has
al eady
show
that
havi g
abu da t
biomass
is
ot
e ough.The
cou t y
had
a
ambitious
5,000-pla t
ta get
u de
SATAT,
but
fi a ci g
co st ai ts,
feedstock
logistics,
app ovals,
p ici g
u ce tai ty
a d
weak
p oject
eco omics
slowed
the
i dust y’s
developme t.GOBARdha
is
the
gove me t’s
attempt
to
add ess
those
weak esses
th ough
o e
atio al
f amewo k.At
Rs
23,731
c o e
ove
te
yea s,
the
bet
is
substa tial.But
the
eal
sig ifica ce
of
the
scheme
is
ot
the
size
of
the
allocatio .
It
is
the
attempt
to
co ect
I dia’s
fa ms,
villages,
waste
st eams
a d
gas
etwo ks
i to
o e
eco omic
system.
Joi
co ve satio
All
Comme ts
→
Sha e
you
thoughts
i
the
comme ts
I sightful
Readi g
Developme t
Comme t
Be
espectful
·
TOI
commu ity
guideli es
If
the
model
wo ks,
cattle
du g
a d
c op
esidue
will
o
lo ge
be
t eated
me ely
as
waste.
They
could
become
feedstock
fo
a
domestic
fuel
i dust y,
while
the
by-p oducts
etu
to
fa ms
as
o ga ic
fe tilise .That
would
tu
the
gove me t’s
“waste-to-wealth”
sloga
i to
a
fu ctio i g
busi ess
model.The
challe ge
is
maki g
su e
the
eco omics
wo k
beyo d
the
subsidy
pe iod.Fo
GOBARdha ,
success
will
the efo e
ot
be
measu ed
simply
by
how
much
mo ey
is
spe t
o
how
ma y
pla ts
a e
egiste ed.
It
will
be
measu ed
by
how
ma y
pla ts
actually
ope ate,
how
much
CBG
they
p oduce,
whethe
fa me s
ea
f om
supplyi g
biomass
a d
whethe
I dia’s
depe de ce
o
impo ted
gas
falls.I dia
has
ple ty
of
waste.
GOBARdha
ow
has
to
p ove
that
it
ca
tu
that
waste
i to
a
depe dable
sou ce
of
e e gy,
i come
a d
eco omic
value.