India’s power generation mix is considerably inclined towards coal based power generation. Current capacity addition and new establishments show increased share of coal in the Indian energy sector. As the coal reserves are limited to their natural availability and also due to the stringent environmental clearance, expansion of coal mining is limited in India. It is predicted that the Indian coal sector will face substantial shortfall in the quantum of coal production that is likely to continue in future.
Natural gas is a clean fuel as compared to coal and can be efficiently used in power generation. As the domestic coal supply is generally of low quality with low calorific values, high degree of ash content and its adverse impacts to the environment, Government of India encourage gas based power generation in India. The use of gas in power-generation was initially promoted by the Government primarily with a view towards environmental considerations.
Petroleum and gas have emerged as the most dynamic energy sectors in India. The World Energy Outlook (WEO) 2002 projects the share of gas in Indian TPES to reach 13% in 2030, equivalent to 97 bcm/y (As compared to 7 % of India’s energy mix in year 2000, equivalent to a consumption of 22 bcm/y). Know more about Indian Electricity Scenario
Production of natural gas is at present at the level of around 132.83 million metric standard cubic meters per day (MMSCMD). The main producers of natural gas are Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC), Oil India Limited (OIL), JVs of Tapti, Panna-Mukta and Ravva and Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) which has discovered gas in the Krishna Godavari basin at its KG D6 block in the east cost of Andhra Pradesh. Out of the total domestic production of 132.83 MMSCMD of gas about 43% is produced by Reliance Industries Ltd. (as of December 2009) and approximately 57% of the gas is produced by others.
As on June 30, 2011, and as per the Central Electricity Authority the total installed capacity of Gas based power plants in India is 17,706.35 MW. This accounts for 10% of the total installed capacity. Here is a list of some present in operation plants.
| Power station | Operator | State (Location) | Installed Capacity |
| IPGCL Gas Turbine Power Station | IPGCL | NCT Delhi | 270.00 |
| Pragati Gas Power Station | PPCL | NCT Delhi | 330.40 |
| Pampore Gas Turbine Station I | J&K Govt | Jammu & Kashmir | 75.00 |
| Pampore Gas Turbine Station II | J&K Govt | Jammu & Kashmir | 100.00 |
| Ramgarh Gas Thermal Power Station | RVUNL | Rajasthan | 113.80 |
| Dholpur Combined Cycle Power Station | RVUNL | Rajasthan | 330.00 |
| Anta Thermal Power Station | NTPC | Rajasthan | 413.00 |
| Auraiya Thermal Power Station | NTPC | Uttar Pradesh | 652.00 |
| Faridabad Thermal Power Plant | NTPC | Haryana | 430.00 |
| National Capital TPP | NTPC | Uttar Pradesh | 817.00 |
| Dhuvaran Gas Based CCPP-I | GSECL | Gujarat | 106.62 |
| Dhuvaran Gas Based CCPP-II | GSECL | Gujarat | 112.45 |
| Utran Gas Based CCPP | GSECL | Gujarat | 363.00 |
| Vadodara Gas Based CCPP-I | GIPCL | Gujarat | 145.00 |
| Vadodara Gas Based CCPP-II | GIPCL | Gujarat | 165.00 |
| Uran Gas Turbine Power Station | Mahagenco | Maharastra | 672.00 |
| Kawas TPS | NTPC | Gujarat | 645.00 |
| Jhanor-Gandhar TPS | NTPC | Gujarat | 648.00 |
| Goa Gas Power Station | RSPCL | Goa | 48.00 |
| Vatva Combined Cycle Power Plant | Torrent | Gujarat | 100.00 |
| SUGEN Combined Cycle Power Plant | Torrent | Gujarat | 1147.50 |
| Essar Combined Cycle Power Plant | Essar | Gujarat | 515.00 |
| GSEG Combined Cycle Power Plant | GSEG | Gujarat | 156.00 |
| GPEC Combined Cycle Power Plant | GPEC | Gujarat | 655.00 |
| Trombay Gas Power Station | Tata | Maharastra | 180.00 |
| Basin Bridge Gas Turbine Power Station | TNEB | Tamilnadu | 120.00 |
| Thirumakottai Gas Turbine Power Station | TNEB | Tamilnadu | 108.88 |
| Kuttalam Gas Turbine Power Station | TNEB | Tamilnadu | 101.00 |
| Valathur Gas Turbine Power Station – I | TNEB | Tamilnadu | 95.00 |
| Valathur Gas Turbine Power Station – II | TNEB | Tamilnadu | 92.10 |
| Karaikal Gas Turbine Power Station | PPCL | Pondycherry | 32.50 |
| Rajiv Gandhi CCPP | NTPC | Kerala | 359.58 |
| Jegurupadu Combined Cycle Power Plant – I | GVK | Andhra Pradesh | 216.00 |
| APGPCL Plant – I | APGPCL | Andhra Pradesh | 100.00 |
| Kusalava power plant,GMK Formly | Triveni | Andhra Pradesh | 3.2 |
| Spectrum Combined Cycle Power Plant | Spectrum | Andhra Pradesh | 209.00 |
| Gautami Combined Cycle Power Plant | Mytas | Andhra Pradesh | 464.00 |
| Konaseema Combined Cycle Power Plant | KGPL | Andhra Pradesh | 445.00 |
| Lanco Kondapalli Power Plant- I | Lanco | Andhra Pradesh | 368.13 |
| Lanco Kondapalli Power Plant- II | Lanco | Andhra Pradesh | 366.00 |
| Vemagiri Combined Cycle Power Plant | GMR | Andhra Pradesh | 370.00 |
| Samarlakota Combined Cycle Power Plant | Reliance | Andhra Pradesh | 220.00 |
| Aban Combined Cycle Power Plant | Lanco | Tamil nadu | 113.21 |
| Kochi Combined Cycle Power Station | BSES | Kerala | 157.00 |
| PPN Combined Cycle Power Plant | TNPCB | Tamil nadu | |
| Lakwa Thermal Power Station | APGCL | Assam | 120.00 |
| Namrup Thermal Power Station | APGCL | Assam | 111.00 |
| Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation | 2000 | ||
| Total | 13,711.27 |
Given limitations on the use of coal for power generation due to its environmental consequences, quality and supply constraints, gas will play an increasingly important role in India’s power sector. While it is true that India is not a big producer of Natural Gas but new international import policies/treaties with some gulf countries and domestic explorations can bring some hope for the Indian energy sector.
Information source: GAIL, ONGC, International Energy Agency, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, GOI
Know more about Natural Gas – Production, Demand and Allocation in India
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