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India’s Natural Gas Challenge: Escaping the vicious price-demand loop
India aims to raise natural gas’s share in its energy mix to 15% by 2030, positioning it as a cleaner alternative to coal and a transitional fuel for a sustainable future. As a “bridge fuel,” it offers lower carbon intensity and supports rising energy needs, but the key question remains: are current efforts enough to meet this goal?
Expanding City Gas Distribution (CGD) networks, investing in LNG terminals, and laying thousands of kilo-meters of pipelines certainly suggest unstoppable momentum. The increase from 54 Geographical Areas (GAs) in 2013 to 307 by 2024reflects a remarkable rise achieved through multiple bidding rounds, including the 12th CGD Bidding Round concluded in March 2024, which sought to achieve 100% national CGD coverage.
Despite the significant expansion of City Gas Distribution (CGD) coverage following the 9th and 10th bidding rounds, where the majority of newly licensed Geographical Areas (GAs) were concentrated in the eastern, northeastern, and southern regions of India, recent consumption data suggests that gas uptake in these regions remains relatively low. For instance, as of February 2025, Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) data shows that Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh, states that gained coverage in later bidding rounds, record total CGD consumption of just 0.11, 2.94, 2.37, and 0.18 MMSCMD, respectively. In contrast, legacy CGD markets such as Gujarat (372.16 MMSCMD), Maharashtra (230.76 MMSCMD), and Delhi (157.94 MMSCMD) continue to dominate overall demand.
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