GAIL to invest Rs 1,736 cr in wind power project in Maharashtra

New Delhi: State-owned gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd will invest Rs 1,736.25 crore in setting up a wind power project in Maharashtra that will help expand its renewable energy portfolio, as it targets net zero carbon emissions by 2035.

In a regulatory filing, GAIL said its board at its meeting on Friday approved the investment in setting up 178.2 megawatt wind power capacity.

The project, to be completed in 24 months from the award of the contract, will add to the existing portfolio of 117.95 MW. Besides, the firm also has 27 MW of solar energy projects spread across Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

Its wind power projects are in Gujarat (19.2 MW), Karnataka (38.1 MW) and Tamil Nadu (60.65 MW).

The project to generate electricity from wind is part of a broader effort to boost renewable capacity and meet net-zero carbon emission targets by 2035.

"GAIL has set a target of achieving net zero through reduction in Scope-1 and Scope-2 (carbon) emissions by 2035 and Scope-3 emissions by 2040. GAIL plans to increase its renewable energy capacity up to 3.4 GW by the year 2035 to achieve the net zero targets," according to the company's website.

The company is also investing in other forms of clean energy, including green hydrogen and compressed biogas (CBG) projects, to align with India's national energy goals.

GAIL is India's largest natural gas transmission and marketing company. It owns and operates an extensive network of about 18,0001 km of natural gas pipelines, spanning the length and breadth of India.

Besides being the biggest marketer of gas in the country, it also owns the LPG portfolio and has two petrochemical plants in Pata, Uttar Pradesh, and one in Assam.