In a first, Noida high-rise to run diesel gensets on PNG fuel

In a first, residents of a high-rise in Noida on Saturday got their society’s diesel generator set converted to run on a mixture of piped natural gas (PNG) and diesel. The step will not only reduce the cost of power backup but will also reduce pollution in the housing society.

The residents of Victory Crossroads in Sector 143B got their diesel generator set retrofitted to run on PNG, which is expected to reduce their bill by 20% on the power supplied by the generator set.

The model will bring down power backup charges for thousands of families living in high-rises in the district. At present, Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) supplies PNG to nearly 90,000 residential consumers in Gautam Budh Nagar. IGL has a network for PNG supply to most areas across Noida and Greater Noida.

Various colonies in Noida, including sectors 44, 45, 62, 71, 73, 77, 78, 82, 91, 96, 100. 110, 127, 128, 135, 137, 138, 143, 144 and 145, have many high-rise residential towers, residents of which pay high charges for power backup.

V Nagarajan, director (commercial) of IGL, along with Dr BB Awasthi, regional officer of Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB), Noida, inaugurated the PNG supply to the dual injection generator sets in the high-rise.

Nagarajan said,“It is a pilot project to run the existing diesel-based generators installed in residential complexes on a mix of PNG and diesel as fuel for power backup. This is the first retrofitting for residential use.”

Awasthi said switching from diesel to PNG will go a long way in improving the environment.

KC Bansal, director of the builder firm, Victory Projects, who persuaded the residents to go for eco-friendly retrofitting, said that his company has decided to make a similar provision in its other projects. The housing society has 291 flats, of which possession of 165 has been given.

JS Rathore, the regional manager of the company that got the generator sets retrofitted, said,“While running at full capacity, the usage of PNG and diesel is expected to be in the ratio of 70:30. The cost of the retrofitting kit is recoverable in around eight months, by way of reduction in power backup bill.”

The residents of Victory Crossroads welcomed the move. “We have been paying Rs17.50 per unit for the electricity consumed from the backup supply. Now, we have been told that the cost per unit will be Rs13.50. It will also reduce air pollution in our society,” said Dwarka Daga, president, RWA.

Rathore said that though he has used this hybrid technology in various industries in the National Capital Region, this is the first time it has been used in a residential society.

“Besides reducing electricity bills of consumers, it will help a great deal in improving the air quality. Poisonous gases are exhausted from diesel generator sets. PNG sets will be helpful for high-rises as children play in the open and residents take walks inside the housing complex,” he said.

“In line with its vision to provide clean energy solutions, IGL has started the process of approaching residential apartment complexes across Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad to convert their power backup arrangements to enable them to run on gas,” said Amandeep Singh, chief general manager, corporate communications, IGL.