Will increase share of natural gas 2.5 times by 2030, says IOC executive
Indian Oil Corp is planning to boost its natural gas consumption two-and-a-half times by 2030 in its quest for carbon neutrality, its refinery chief has said.
Indian Oil has set a net zero operational emissions target by 2046 and increasing the use of less-emitting gas is a key element of that plan. «Our natural gas consumption strategy is part of the national goal to increase the share of gas in primary energy consumption to 15% by 2030 from the current 6%,» Sukla Mistry, Director (Refineries), told ET.
Currently, Indian Oil's refineries together consume about 8.5 million metric standard cubic meters a day (mmscmd) of natural gas.
The use of naphtha is expected to increasingly fade at refineries as gas consumption rises.
At Indian Oil, naphtha and natural gas currently contribute almost equally to the production of hydrogen as well as electricity used by refineries.
The company is also rapidly expanding its refining and petrochemical business. It plans to invest more than ₹1 lakh crore to increase its refining capacity by a third to 107 million metric tonnes per annum (mmtpa) by 2026.
