India Today | Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurates Asia's largest Compressed Bio Gas plant in Punjab

Oct 19,2022

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurated Asia's largest Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) plant in Lehragaga, in Punjab's Sangrur on Tuesday.

Addressing the inaugural event of the CBG plant, Puri said the plant in Sangrur is just the beginning of India's master plan for a CBG-based rural economy and the government is taking all steps to promote the ecosystem around it.

The plant has been commissioned with a foreign direct investment of approximately Rs. 220 crores by Verbio AG, one of Germany's leading bio-energy companies. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and senior management from Verbio India Private Limited were also present at the inaugural ceremony.

Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri inaugurated the compressed biogas plant in Punjab's Sangrur along with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

The CBG plant at Sangrur is spread across an area of 20 acres. The plant's present production is about six tonnes per day but soon it will process 300 tonnes of paddy straw per day to produce 33 TPD of compressed biogas using eight digesters of 10,000 cubic meters.

The Union Minister said initiatives, such as the CBG plant, are a huge leap in arriving at a win-win situation for farmers and the environment.

Talking about the benefits of the CBG plant, Puri said the plant will consume 100,000 tonnes of paddy straw, which will be procured from six to eight satellite locations within a 10km radius of the plant. There shall be daily production of about 600-650 Tons of FOM (fermented organic manure), which can be used for organic farming. The CBG plant will also help provide direct employment to 390 and indirect employment to 585 people.

"Not only will the plant generate additional income for Sangrur's farmers but will also provide a much-needed alternative to stubble burning," said Puri adding that the plant will help cut down the need for stubble burning in 40,000 – 45,000 acres of fields, translating into an annual reduction of 150,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

This, Puri said, will not only ensure that citizens of Sangrur and nearby areas breathe in cleaner air but also contribute towards India's COP26 Climate Change target and the target of achieving net zero emissions by 2070.

Referring to the efforts being made to encourage the indigenous manufacturing of CBG plant equipment such as cascades, compressors and dispensers, Puri said that it would ramp up ‘Make in India’ opportunities across India's manufacturing sector. "We are working with the stakeholders to make cheaper credit available for the establishment of the plants," he said.