Car makers cheer as govt plans hike in CNG footprint

Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and other car makers have welcomed the government’s plans to increase the number of CNG stations by seven times to 10,000 over the next 12 years.

Speaking at the annual SIAM (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers) Convention Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that come 2030 at least 10,000 CNG filling stations will be operational throughout the country.

Currently, only 1,424 stations cater to 3 million vehicles including three-wheelers, taxis and commercial cars. As most of these stations are limited to Delhi, Mumbai and Gujarat it limits the vehicle’s ability to move beyond these areas for lack of filling options.

While CNG is less polluting than petrol and diesel (20-30 percent lower CO2 than compared internal combustion car) it is also priced much cheaper than the two. A kilogram of CNG in Mumbai costs Rs 46 while a litre of petrol costs Rs 87. CNG is also more fuel-efficient than petrol.

Maruti Suzuki, the country’s largest car maker, has a portfolio of seven models that come with factory-fitted CNG kits. Ertiga, Dzire, Eeco, Alto, Celerio, Wagon R and Carry are available with CNG options. Till date, Maruti has sold more than 4 lakh vehicles.

Speaking to Moneycontrol earlier a senior Maruti Suzuki official had said the demand for CNG-powered cars is very high given the low cost of the fuel. “But due to lower availability of filling stations resulting in long queues people tend to stay away from CNG cars”, said the executive. Around 82 percent of CNG filling stations are centered in Gujarat, Delhi and Maharashtra.

With the rise in CNG footprint, it is expected that the number of CNG-powered cars will rise by more than five times to 17 million by 2030. As CNG is all domestically produced the move will save the country from heavy import bills of crude oil. On an average, each car consumes 750 litres of petrol in a year.

Because of the low availability of the fuel not many car makers have invested in fitting a CNG option in their cars. Hyundai, India’s second-biggest carmaker which has the Eon Xcent and Grand i10 powered by CNG options is the only one besides Maruti to offer CNG cars. Mahindra also offers the KUV100, TUV 300, Jeeto with CNG option.

Companies like Tata Motors (except Nano), Ford, Honda, Toyota, Renault and Nissan are yet to have CNG cars in their portfolio.

Pradhan also assured to the industry that his ministry is on schedule for the launch of the Bharat Stage VI fuel and will introduce it pan India on the agreed timeline of April 1, 2020.