Shock to Gautam Adani, company was claiming to deliver gas to Noida homes, rejected by PNGRB
Prior to the formation of PNGRB, this permission was given by the Central Government.
The Oil and Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) has rejected the application of Adani Group company Adani Total Gas Limited to obtain a license for retail sale of CNG and piped cooking gas to households in Noida. The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board said in an order issued on July 14 that Adani Total Gas Limited does not fulfill the conditions as per the rules regarding CNG and PNG distribution in Noida.
Any company desirous of carrying out the business of retail sale of CNG or piped gas to kitchens in any area has to obtain a license from PNGRB. Prior to the formation of PNGRB, this permission was given by the Central Government. Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) has got approval for gas distribution in the National Capital Territory of Delhi. Adani Total Gas challenged its claim in the areas adjacent to Delhi.
The matter went to the Supreme Court, the court said that the regulator should take a decision
IGL has been distributing CNG in Delhi and surrounding areas since early 1990s. It also got distribution rights in Noida from the central government in April 2004. Adani Total Gas had staked claim for Noida in 2008. PNGRB could not take a decision on that application and the matter went to the Supreme Court. The court had said in September last year that the regulator was free to take a decision on the application. Since then, PNGRB was looking into the application of the Adani group company.
Two of the three members of the regulatory board, Gajendra Singh and AK Tiwari, voted in favor of rejecting the application. However, the third member Ajit Kumar Pandey was of the opinion that the matter is sub-judice in the Appellate Tribunal, so it would not be right for him to pass the order. In its order, PNGRB said that after considering the documents submitted by the Adani group, the board rejected the application.
