India: IOCL bags retail gas licenses in 10 areas
Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) wins rights for nine towns, PNGRB oil regulator announced for the 10th city gas bid round.
State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC) will hold gas distribution licenses on its own in nine cities, particularly in Bihar and Jharkhnad, and one more in a joint venture with Adani Gas, according to a press statement issued by Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).
HPCL, a subsidiary of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), also won licences to retail CNG to automobiles and piped natural gas to households in nine cities in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, reported millenniumpost.
A small consortium composed of LNG Marketing Pte Ltd and Atlantic Gulf & Pacific Company of Manila Inc was granted rights for nine cities in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala.
Gujarat Gas Ltd will have the right to operate six cities and state gas utility GAIL India's unit GAIL Gas Ltd will do so for four. Also, Indraprastha Gas Ltd and Torrent Gas were benefited rights for three cities each, while Adani Gas and Bharat Gas Resources Ltd, a subsidiary of state-owned Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL), won two cities each.
"With the completion of 10th CGD Bidding Round, city gas distribution licenses (CGD) would be available in 228 GAs comprising 402 districts spread over 27 States and Union Territories covering approximately 70 per cent of India's population and 53 per cent of its geographical area," the statement said.
This is the second city gas bidding round in a row that IOC has dominated, informed milleniumpost. In the previous 9th audiction, IOC had bagged licences for eight cities on its own and an extra one in a joint venture with Adani Gas. The latter, on its side, had in the shame round won exclusive licences for thirteen cities followed by Bharat Gas Resources Ltd, with eleven areas.
