LNG fuel rules change again
Only four buses across India are presently running on LNG as fuel: two at Dahej and two at Kochi, both owned by Petronet-LNG.
But that isn't stopping the PNGRB from working out the third set of amendments in four years to regulations governing the technical and safety standards of dispensing LNG as a mass-market fuel. On May 5 (2022), PNGRB secretary Vandana Sharma issued a single page public notice seeking industry feedback by June 4 (2022) on a 12-page draft titled: PNGRB (Technical Standards and Specifications including Safety Standards for dispensing of Automotive Fuels) Third Amendment Regulations, 2022.
A PNGRB source explains the gas regulator wants to introduce three 'sub-regulations' covering the technical parameters and safety standards governing the sale of LNG from ISO-regulated containers and mobile dispensers. He adds the PNGRB wants a four-point sub-regulation in Scheule-9 covering approvals needed for the sale of LNG.
Also wanted by the PNGRB is feedback on mobile LNG dispensers, the minimum design requirements, inspection, maintenance, safety and emergency parameters of dispensing LNG, and the layout and operating procedures of LNG dispensers. This isn't the first time the PNGRB is modifying LNG dispensing guidelines.
First published in the government's official Gazette on November 16 (2018), the PNGRB later amended them on September 15 (2020). On May 5 (2022), Sharma sent three similar notices and drafts calling for industry feedback on EV charging and battery swap facilities, dispensing CNG from MRUs (Mobile Refuelling Units) and petroleum installations, including Aviation Fuelling Stations (AFS) and lube manufacturing and filling plants.