Mahindra vehicles run on bio-CNG buses on a trial basis

Firm says what it showcased today is just technology demonstration; going forward, it can make the product commercially viable

Auto major Mahindra & Mahindra's vehicles at Mahindra World City will be powered by bio-CNG fuel at the demo plant, which was inaugurated here today. The company said what it showcased today is just a technology demonstration and that going forward, it can also make the product commercially viable.

Today the company inaugurated a bio-CNG plant, inaugurated by Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (Independent Charge - Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy, at Mahindra World City, near Chennai.

The plant will work on aerobic digestion of biomass to produce biogas which can be further enriched to make it an autograde CNG equivalent. Subsequently, the purified gas will be compressed to 200 bars and stored in cylinders to power automobiles. The manure that will come out from the plant will be utilized as fertiliser or composted with organic material for producing compost fertilizer.

In Mahindra World City the biogas will be used for generating power and fueling CNG buses and tractors. Further, the power generated will be used for street lighting, buses for free shuttle service and tractor for cultivation.

Pawan Goenka, executive director and president Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors for Mahindra & Mahindra said that this is more a technology demonstration and part of CSR.

"We hope it will be commercially viable, but we need to bring down the cost for that," he said.

The company has joined hands with IIT Delhi for the purification technology part. Goenka said the company is open to share technology with entrepreneurs who wanted to set up such bio-CNG plant.

It may be noted currently Railways uses Biogas for shunting of engines. It was reported that Scania is planning to launch range of city buses that runs on bio fuels (bio-ethanol and bio-gas).

Tamil Nadu investment

Mahindra & Mahindra has said that it got almost the entire land of around 400 acres allocated for the company at Cheyyar, near Chennai.

The company will be setting up a test track in the Phase-I, followed by an automotive plant. Around 250 acres will be allocated, said Pawan Goenka, executive director and president Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors for Mahindra & Mahindra.

Goenka said the company will initially invest around Rs 400-500 crore to set up the test track. It will work on automotive plant as part of phase-II expansion, that would be taken up after company completes investment in Chakan plant, Maharashtra.

The company signed a MoU with Tamil Nadu, which gives cushion of seven years to set invest the money in Tamil Nadu.

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