Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) Chairman Subhankar Sen said the company’s agreement with Northern Railway’s Delhi Division will facilitate the replacement of a substantial quantity of LPG with natural gas, helping reduce import dependence and the associated subsidy burden. The MoU covers Commercial Piped Natural Gas (PNG) supply to 22 designated railway locations across Delhi, Ghaziabad and Gautam Budh Nagar.
“Indian Railways has chosen IGL as its collaborative partner to replace LPG with PNG and this MoU will facilitate the substitution of a substantial quantity of LPG with natural gas, thereby helping reduce import dependence and the associated subsidy burden,” Sen said. He added that the collaboration could support a wider transition from LPG to PNG across the Indian Railways network.
PNG supply to begin at 22 railway locations
The first phase includes departmental mechanised laundries at Delhi Sarai Rohilla, Old Delhi, Anand Vihar Terminal, Hazrat Nizamuddin and New Delhi, where PNG will be used for boiler operations. The agreement also covers officers’ rest houses, base kitchens, running rooms, subordinate rest houses and guard and travelling ticket examiner (TTE) lobbies.
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Initial consumption is estimated at about 3,000 standard cubic metres per day (SCMD). According to the source material, this is expected to replace daily use of around 500 kg of LPG and 2,500 litres of diesel. As PNG infrastructure and connectivity expand across IGL’s authorised geographical areas, including Ajmer, Banda, Rewari and Muzaffarnagar, demand under the initiative is projected to rise to approximately 8,000–10,000 SCMD in the coming years.
Railway official cites potential energy-cost savings
Northern Railway, Delhi Division, DRM Pushpesh Raman Tripathi said the agreement would help reduce Indian Railways’ energy costs. He said the division plans to extend PNG connectivity to railway hospitals and residential colonies in the future, and thanked the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas for facilitating the collaboration.
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The MoU was signed in the presence of Tripathi, IGL Chairman Sen, Managing Director Kumar Shanker, Director (Commercial) Mohit Bhatia and senior officials from both organisations. Shanker described the arrangement as a model for collaboration between Indian Railways and city gas distribution companies. Bhatia said the agreement demonstrated how public-sector organisations could work together on cleaner and more efficient energy solutions.
