Gas Boost for Urea Plants: Output to Rise

New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) The government has procured additional natural gas through a spot bid to ramp up urea production at fertiliser plants, which have been operating well below capacity due to a fuel shortage amid the West Asia crisis, a government official said on Thursday.

Fertiliser plants in the country require about 52 million metric standard cubic metres per day (MMSCMD) of natural gas to operate at full capacity, but were receiving only around 32 MMSCMD, meeting barely 62 per cent of their requirement, resulting in a significant shortfall in urea output, the official told PTI.

To address this, a spot auction was conducted, where plants collectively sought 8.56 MMSCMD of additional gas. The bid secured 7.31 MMSCMD, with supplies to be delivered immediately from March 19 to March 31, the official said.

With this additional procurement, the total gas availability at fertiliser plants has risen to approximately 40 MMSCMD, a jump of around 23 per cent over the earlier supply level.


Plants are now expected to operate at 78 to 80 per cent of installed capacity, compared to 62 per cent earlier, the official added.

The additional gas is expected to result in incremental urea production of 12,500 to 13,000 tonnes per day until the end of this month, the official said.

The government official described the move as a significant step by the government to bridge the demand-supply gap and ensure adequate availability of the key farm input ahead of the upcoming kharif season.

The US and Israel have launched military strikes on targets in Iran at the end of February. Tehran retaliated with missiles and drones aimed at Israel and countries hosting US forces, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.