NEW DELHI: State-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is set to invest ₹25,000 crore in the City Gas Distribution (CGD) network over the next five years, said a senior company official. BPCL, India’s second-largest state-owned oil firm with a capacity of 35 MMTPA refining capacity, has already invested around ₹8,000 crore across its 26 geographical areas.
“Our chairman publicly stated that over the next five years, BPCL will invest approximately ₹25,000 crore in the City Gas Distribution network. So far, we have already invested around ₹8,000 crore across our 26 geographical areas. We are confident that, in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Viksit Bharat, BPCL is accelerating CGD expansion faster than most other entities in the country,” said Rahul Tandon, Business Head (Gas).
The company is also increasing its import of natural gas to expand its gas distribution portfolio and has issued a tender process to source 10-year-LNG supply. According to the company, it has received bids from over 10 international players for long-term LNG supply. Tandon said under this contract, from April 2026 to 2035, BPCL will source four LNG cargoes annually for the first three years, and eight cargoes annually for the remaining seven years.
“These supplies will cater to the requirements of our CGD entities, our customers, and BPCL’s internal consumption,” said Tandon.
BPCL currently sells 2.2–2.4 million tons of LNG annually, and this could triple to 6.5–6.6 million tons per annum by 2030. The company is currently sourcing LNG from Gorgon Gas in Australia and RasGas in Qatar.
India is a major importer of natural gas, primarily as liquefied natural gas (LNG), with Qatar, the United States, and the UAE being its top suppliers. The country is targeting to raise the share of gas in its energy mix to 15% by 2030 from the current 6.2%. However, achieving this goal may be challenging due to high gas prices and lower consumption of traditional fuels by industry.