Indian Oil-Adani Gas Private Limited (IOAGPL) is keen on making available compressed natural gas (CNG) for private vehicles, private buses and the fleet of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC). The company will be investing more than Rs 4.5 billion in Kerala over a span of four to five years to lay a natural gas pipeline network of 250 km of steel network, more than 2,000 km of medium-density polyethylene network along with associated facilities to provide CNG to domestic, industrial and commercial units. Meanwhile, the gas distribution company will also set up 200 CNG stations to cater to the transport sector.
Currently, there are about 10,000 old BS-III buses in Kerala that cannot operate beyond 10 years. Once converted into CNG buses, their life can be extended by five years. Retro fitment of these buses to CNG will cost Rs 350,000 and can be recovered in a span of six months. In the initial phase, five buses will be converted into CNG buses.