GAIL to double its share capital, expand into specialized chemicals and sustainable energy

10 Aug 2022 , 09:13 AM

GAIL (India) Ltd seeks to expand beyond natural gas transmission and distribution by doubling the share capital of its company and expanding into the fields of specialty chemicals and clean energy.

To assist raise money for its expansion goals over the next three to four years, GAIL has asked shareholders for permission to boost the company's authorized share capital from its present level of Rs5,000 crore to Rs10,000 crore.

As part of the government's goal to more than double the share of natural gas in the primary energy basket to 15% by 2030, the company is installing natural gas truck pipelines to establish a national gas infrastructure and increase city gas distribution.

"GAIL has a capital target of roughly Rs30,000 crores over the next three to four years. These initiatives will be partially funded by internal resources and partially by debt, which may also be financed through the equity route "In a notice to shareholders, the company stated.

The business also hinted that it would consider giving its shareholders bonus stock shares.

In order to expand into new economic sectors, India's largest state-owned natural gas processing, and distribution corporation also sought to change the Memorandum of Association (MoA).

In addition to setting up wind and solar power plants and a round-the-clock power generation through a storage system, it also wants to diversify into the specialty chemicals industry, consider the possibility of taking equity in the energy exchange, and pursue acquisitions in the solar glass and module manufacturing industry.

The business plans to set up ethanol production facilities to create the biofuel that can be blended with gasoline from biomass.

According to the shareholders' notice, the company is eager to develop in the green hydrogen industry and offer risk management services to its clients.

By the end of 2023, one of the biggest Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolyzers in the nation will be installed thanks to a contract that GAIL has already granted.

The facility, according to GAIL, would be erected at the business' Vijaipur Complex in Madhya Pradesh's Guna district and run entirely on renewable energy.

The nation's first effort to incorporate hydrogen into the natural gas infrastructure was launched earlier this year by GAIL.

One of the company's joint ventures, Avantika Gas Ltd (AGL), which sells CNG to cars and pipes cooking gas to homes in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, is receiving natural gas combined with hydrogen.

The government's ambitious goal of increasing India's non-fossil fuel energy capacity to 500 gigawatts by 2030 and satisfying 50% of the country's energy needs from renewable sources includes the green push.