The SATAT initiative was launched on 1 October 2018, with public-sector oil marketing companies inviting expressions of interest from entrepreneurs to set up CBG plants and sell the gas for use as automotive fuel. It envisaged 5,000 plants producing 15 MMT of CBG a year by 2023-24. GOBARdhan was launched the same year under Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) to turn village bio-waste into biogas and bio-slurry. By 8 March 2021, 9 plants had been commissioned under SATAT, and by 1 November 2023, 50.
Compressed Biogas (CBG)
Compressed Biogas (CBG)
Compressed biogas (CBG) is produced from waste and biomass such as crop residue, cattle dung, press mud and municipal organic waste, and is chemically equivalent to natural gas. The SATAT initiative, launched on 1 October 2018, invited entrepreneurs to set up CBG plants and sell the gas to oil and gas marketing companies; plants commissioned under it rose from 9 in March 2021 to 80 by 30 November 2024. A CBG obligation for city gas networks became mandatory from FY 2025-26 at 1%, rising to 5% from 2028-29. On 6 August 2026 the Union Cabinet approved GOBARdhan, a ₹23,731 crore national scheme for CBG, when the GOBARdhan portal listed 1,908 registered and 217 commissioned plants. The counter shows CBG plants commissioned under SATAT.
1,908
CBG/Bio-CNG plants registered on the GOBARdhan portal (6 Aug 2026)
₹23,731 cr
GOBARdhan scheme outlay, FY 2026-27 to 2035-36 (approved 6 Aug 2026)
1% → 5%
CBG obligation in CNG and PNG sales (FY 2025-26 → 2028-29)
CBG plants commissioned under SATAT
| Year | CBG plants commissioned (SATAT) |
|---|---|
| 2021 | 9 plants |
| 2022 | 38 plants |
| 2023 | 50 plants |
| 2024 | 80 plants |
2021
0plants
CBG plants commissioned (SATAT)
20212024
Since 2021
Added
+71 plants
2021
9 plants
2024
80 plants
Why it matters India meets nearly 50 per cent of its natural gas requirement through imports, and CBG can replace part of the gas used in CNG vehicles and piped kitchen gas. Plants give farmers a buyer for crop residue and cattle dung, which can reduce the burning of farm residue, and they also produce organic manure.
- SATAT launched 1 Oct 2018, envisaging 5,000 CBG plants producing 15 MMT of CBG a year by 2023-24
- CBG plants commissioned under SATAT: 9 (8 Mar 2021) → 80 (30 Nov 2024); over 130 by 1 Nov 2025
- CBG obligation approved by the National Biofuels Coordination Committee on 24 Nov 2023: 1% (FY 2025-26), 3% (2026-27), 4% (2027-28), 5% from 2028-29
- GOBARdhan portal (6 Aug 2026): 1,908 plants registered, 217 commissioned producing 0.4 MMSCMD, 339 under construction
- GOBARdhan scheme approved 6 Aug 2026: ₹23,731 crore for FY 2026-27 to 2035-36; administered price ₹2,110 per MMBTU
History
Notable milestone
On 6 August 2026 the Union Cabinet approved GOBARdhan, the National Circular Bioenergy Scheme, with an outlay of ₹23,731 crore for FY 2026-27 to FY 2035-36. The CBG ecosystem, earlier spread across four ministries, was consolidated under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The scheme sets an administered CBG price of ₹2,110 per MMBTU (equivalent to ₹105 per kg), capital assistance of up to ₹2 crore per tonne per day of capacity, pipeline support, and credit guarantee cover of up to 85% on eligible loans for MSME projects. The government expects it to raise domestic CBG production nearly ten-fold.
How it works
CBG is made from sources such as agricultural residue, cattle dung, press mud and municipal organic waste, and can be used wherever natural gas is used. Oil and gas marketing companies buy it from producers under SATAT, and it can be injected into city gas pipelines. Since FY 2025-26, city gas distribution companies must meet a CBG obligation as a share of their CNG (transport) and PNG (domestic) sales, monitored by a Central Repository Body. Plants register on the GOBARdhan Unified Registration Portal, launched on 1 June 2023, to claim support such as ₹1,500 per tonne of market development assistance for organic manure.
Outlook
The CBG obligation rises to 3% in FY 2026-27, 4% in 2027-28 and 5% from 2028-29; when it was announced in November 2023 it was expected to bring investment of around ₹37,500 crore and 750 CBG projects by 2028-29. On 6 August 2026 the GOBARdhan portal listed 339 plants under construction alongside 217 commissioned. The Biomass Aggregation Machinery scheme, with an outlay of ₹564.75 crore, had approved 37 proposals by 16 March 2026, and a pipeline infrastructure scheme of ₹994.5 crore runs to FY 2028-29. Over a decade, GOBARdhan is expected to save over ₹40,000 crore in foreign exchange and generate over 1.5 lakh jobs.
By the numbers
9 → 80 CBG plants commissioned under SATAT (8 Mar 2021 → 30 Nov 2024); over 130 by 1 Nov 2025. 217 commissioned, 339 under construction and 1,908 registered on the GOBARdhan portal (6 Aug 2026). 0.4 MMSCMD output from commissioned plants (6 Aug 2026). 1% → 5% CBG obligation (FY 2025-26 → 2028-29). ₹23,731 crore GOBARdhan outlay (FY 2026-27 to 2035-36). ₹2,110 per MMBTU administered price. Sources: Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Ministry of Jal Shakti and Union Cabinet via PIB.
Data current to: As on 6 August 2026
Source: Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas via PIB — the chart shows CBG plants commissioned under the SATAT initiative, from Parliament replies and year-end reviews: 9 (8 March 2021), 38 (31 October 2022), 50 (1 November 2023) and 80 (30 November 2024), each keyed by the calendar year of its date. A later SATAT figure, over 130 plants by 1 November 2025, is not an exact count and is not charted. The headline 217 is the number of commissioned CBG/Bio-CNG plants on the GOBARdhan Unified Registration Portal on 6 August 2026, from PIB's GOBARdhan backgrounder (linked); it is counted on a different basis from the SATAT series. · link