Where does India stand in CNG vehicles?

Fuelling the minds of people to opt for CNG vehicles has been the government’s plan for years. This cajoling is now slowly but surely taking shape as people as well as car manufacturers are warming up to the idea. Maruti Suzuki currently offers CNG variants in 7 of its 14 models. Hyundai offers factory-fitted CNG vehicles in 3 out of its 10 models.

The biggest advantage for the average Indian consumer is the running cost for CNG cars is Rs 1,60 per km against Rs 3.5-4 a km for a diesel and petrol. The reason for the slow penetration of the CNG car segment is the lack of refill stations. There have been several reports of people standing in serpentine queues for hours.

The Government of India is now planning to operationalise 3,400 CNG distribution outlets across 373 cities by the end of the year. There were 1,730 CNG stations in 190 cities at the end of 2019.

Presently, CNG cars are sold in 27 countries in the world and the share of CNG variants in the commercial vehicle segment has grown from 5% in 2019 to CY 8% in 2020.

With the government keen on expanding the CNG footprint, companies such as Ford and Mahindra too are making plans in a big way to capture the market. In what can be termed as a positive trend, in FY 2020, 117,000 CNG vehicles were sold.

Energy experts say that the CNG cars are not only fuel efficient but also help combat climate change. It is a gas gambit that one needs to take. Any takers?