ABB India has successfully commissioned ABB Ability SCADAvantage solution for THINK Gas  (formerly AG&P Pratham), enabling end-to-end automation and digitalization of their City Gas Distribution (CGD) network spanning ten Indian states. 

The network spans 19 Geographical Areas (GAs) across Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu, comprising of + CNG stations, approximately 5,50,000 registered D-PNG connections, and around 17,000 inch-km of steel pipeline connecting industrial and commercial establishments. 

Using ABB’s cloud-based automation platform, THINK Gas has centralized operations and real-time visibility of its CGD networks from its control room in Chennai.  

“At THINK Gas, we always aim to be at the forefront in adopting global best practices in safety processes, leveraging cutting-edge technology and building robust infrastructure to deliver natural gas to our customers while catering to their diverse energy needs. We are proud to partner with ABB India on this transformative project, ensuring a secure energy supply for millions of Indians,” said Chiradeep Datta, Director & Chief Operating Officer - THINK Gas. 

“By digitizing and centralizing our natural gas distribution networks, we have significantly boosted operational efficiency, optimized manpower requirements and leveraged real-time data to make better decisions,” added Datta. 

ABB’s SCADAvantage centralizes and controls the natural gas distribution networks, ensuring efficient energy distribution from the source to end users. The platform enables centralized price management and billing, helps in gas planning and gas reconciliation, pressure and flow control, and improves data accuracy and integrity.  

With the help of ABB, THINK Gas was able to significantly reduce natural gas distribution operational costs, especially operator costs by up to 60 percent. Since implementation, the solution has led to improved process times, enhanced responsiveness and greater control of operational parameters across the CGD network. 

“As India scales up its energy initiatives in step with the increasing demand, ABB technology solutions like SCADAvantage are set to play an important role in achieving operational excellence across the country’s energy value chain,” said G Balaji, SVP of the Energy Industries division at ABB India. 

“We are proud to lead this effort, having automated and digitalized 80 percent of the country's City Gas Distribution networks,” added Balaji. 

India has announced a commitment to increase natural gas usage, as part of its wider energy mix, to 15 percent by 2030. The country has witnessed expansion in its CGD infrastructure over the past decade, supporting the supply of cooking fuel like Piped Natural Gas to households, industrial and commercial units as well as transportation fuel like CNG to vehicles.