Reliance Industries and DBS Bank India have joined forces to launch a financing initiative focused on facilitating the establishment of compressed biogas (CBG) plants. The goal is to promote the creation of an ecosystem wherein vendor partners can collect agricultural residue to serve as the primary raw material for Reliance’s CBG production facilities across India.
The company emphasized the substantial amount of agricultural residue in India, frequently discarded through burning because of the absence of processing infrastructure and logistical assistance. The current agricultural residue supply chain is characterized by disorganization, with farmers and aggregators lacking adequate incentives and financial backing.
Reliance Industries considers the initiative a vital component of its net-zero roadmap. The company plans to make nationwide investments to generate Compressed Biogas (CBG) as an environmentally friendly substitute for imported Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and other conventional fuels, establishing India as a significant biofuel provider. Despite advancements in CBG technology, the commercialization process requires the development of new infrastructure and active collaboration with the value chain, including engagement with farmers across different states.
Harindra K Tripathi, Head of Bio-energy Business, Reliance Industries said, “Beyond mitigating carbon emissions, the CBG plants will also contribute to the production of fermented organic manure (FOM), enhancing soil fertility and reducing reliance on chemical fertilizers over time”.
As reported by the Times of India, in the upcoming five years, Reliance aims to set up around a hundred CBG plants, utilising over 5.5 million tons annually of agricultural residue and organic waste. This initiative is anticipated to lead to an annual decrease of nearly two million tons in carbon dioxide emissions.
