1 downloads | 0 views

Regulatory Challenges in India's CBG Sector: A Critical Review

India's compressed biogas (“CBG”) sector sits at the intersection of energy security, decarbonisation and waste management, with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas's Vision 2040 report estimating a potential of approximately 72 MMTPA of CBG from surplus agricultural residue, municipal waste and livestock dung. Despite this potential and a rapidly evolving policy landscape, the ...

India's compressed biogas (“CBG”) sector sits at the intersection of energy security, decarbonisation and waste management, with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas's Vision 2040 report estimating a potential of approximately 72 MMTPA of CBG from surplus agricultural residue, municipal waste and livestock dung. Despite this potential and a rapidly evolving policy landscape, the sector remains constrained by significant legislative and regulatory uncertainty that has, to date, impeded the scale of investment the opportunity warrants. Some of the key regulatory challenges facing the CBG sector include ambiguity with respect to whether the Union Government or State Government has legislative competence to legislate on matters pertaining to CBG sector, lack of a sectoral regulator with wide ranging powers, inconsistent offtake frameworks, feedstock-delinked pricing and a policy architecture grounded in executive direction rather than statute. This creates structural risks for project developers, investors, and lenders. Addressing these regulatory gaps is essential for converting India's CBG potential into a commercially bankable and coherent sector. The article provides critical review of some of the key regulatory issues impeding growth of the CBG sector in India.
Aakanksha Joshi

Aakanksha Joshi

Partner, S&R Associates, Mumbai, India

Aakanksha Joshi is a partner at S&R Associates. Her areas of practice include infrastructure and energy, hospitality, mergers and acquisitions and general corporate matters. Aakanksha advises clients on the regulatory framework relating to, and investments in, infrastructure projects; bidding process and bid documents; concession agreements; engineering, procurement and construction contracts; supply contracts; consultancy contracts; operation and maintenance contracts; and power purchase and off-take agreements. She has extensive experience of advising on projects relating to a wide-range of infrastructure assets, including energy (conventional and renewable), shipping, ports, roads, airports, railways, warehousing, data centers, emobility and waste and water management.
Lipsa Acharyya

Lipsa Acharyya

Counsel, S&R Associates, New Delhi, India

Lipsa Acharyya is a counsel at S&R Associates. Her experience includes advising clients across the infrastructure and energy domain including oil & gas, airports, ports, highways, railways, renewable energy projects, electric vehicle projects, and urban infrastructure projects. Lipsa graduated from National Law School of India University, Bangalore, where she was awarded the Temasek scholarship for academic excellence.
Khushi Khatod

Khushi Khatod

Associate, S&R Associates, Mumbai, India

Khushi Khatod is an associate at S&R Associates, Mumbai. She holds a B.B.A. L.L.B.(Hons.) degree from Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar.
Akshay Dhekane

Akshay Dhekane

Associate, S&R Associates, Mumbai, India

Akshay Dhekane is an associate at S&R Associates, Mumbai. He holds a B.A. L.L.B.(Hons.) degree from National Law University, Delhi. His areas of practice include mergers and acquisitions, advisory, general corporate matters, and hospitality.