New Delhi: In a major step towards making India a gas-based economy and making CNG as the eco-friendly option for long distance transport in the country, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas and Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday unveiled India’s first long distance CNG bus.
The bus is fitted with composite CNG cylinders, which can travel around 1000 kms in a single fill, said the Minister.
The project has been executed by Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) and has been achieved through pioneering design of Type IV Composite Cylinders in buses, replacing traditional very heavy Type-I Carbon Steel cylinders.
Speaking on the occasion, Pradhan described the initiative as a milestone in ease of living for the people of country.
“Government wants to have Green corridor around the national capital, with the buses from here to Chandigarh, Dehradun, Agra and Jaipur running on CNG. The introduction of long range CNG buses fitted with light weight composite cylinders has the capacity to revolutionize the fight against air pollution across the nation,” said the Union Minister.
Mahindra & Mahindra and Agility Fuel Solutions of USA have partnered with IGL for this project, involving introducing the new concept of light weight Type IV composite cylinders in buses. These cylinders are 70 per cent lighter than the Type – I (all steel) cylinders which are being used in India currently.
The main advantage of these Cylinders is that due to its lighter weight, the number of cylinders can be increased in the vehicle thus creating more storage capacity on-board. The buses which used to carry only 80-100 Kg of CNG with steel cylinders can carry 225-275 Kg of CNG with new composite cylinders. More storage of CNG means more KM range of buses. Buses fitted with Type IV Composite Cylinders have a running range of approx. 800- 1000 KM per fill of CNG.
