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EverEnviro Resource Management, the operator of India’s largest compressed biogas (CBG) facility, has established a supply chain network in Punjab by engaging village-level entrepreneurs (VLEs) to procure paddy straw (feedstock) for its CBG plants.
The company has two CBG plants at Sangrur and Patran in Punjab with 20 tonnes per day (TPD) capacity each, which commenced operations from December last year.
Its Indore plant with a capacity of 550 TPD is the largest municipal solid waste CBG facility in the country and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2022.
EverEnviro Resource Management CEO and Managing Director Mahesh Girdhar emphasises that dealing with agricultural waste poses unique challenges, necessitating a robust educational and training system, capacity building, and establishing a local supply chain.
“To address these challenges, we have a business model in rural India, collaborating with VLEs and implementing a catchment area strategy around our plants,” he told businessline.
Circularity model
EverEnviro’s approach to production is deeply rooted in the circularity model, said Girdhar, adding that the adoption of circularity enablers, especially government support and policies, plays a crucial role in shaping the company’s strategy.
“The model we embrace extends its impact across several dimensions, promoting soil health improvement, increased agriculture productivity, sustainability of soil carbon, renewable energy production, job creation and community development among others,” he explained.
The model has been successfully leveraged in Punjab by the company.
“For prompt harvesting within a 30-day period to clear farmers’ fields quickly we have developed a model of VLEs to address this challenge. We are connecting with them around our plants, enabling them in transporting paddy straw bales to us. This forms a value chain development, addressing the challenge of sustainability, securing feedstock for plant operation, considering the requirement,” Girdhar pointed out.
At present, 104 VLEs have been developed across the two project locations in Punjab and 80,000 tonnes of paddy stubble have been procured.
“Utilizing 80,000 tonnes of stubble will prevent the production of 21643000 kg of CO2, which is equivalent to a reduction equal to a vehicle running for 59,79,68,904 kms and saving 5,97,96,890 litres of fuel. It’s worth noting that 1 tonne of CO2 is enough to negatively impact the atmosphere over 9,920 square feet,” he added.
Feedstock availability
Girdhar pointed out that Punjab and Haryana have more than three million hectares to four million hectares of paddy. From each acre one can produce about two tonne of paddy straw per year.
“The challenge is to organise an effective supply chain model that can harvest, collect, and transport the paddy straw to our CBG facilities. We have partnered with VLEs who have the necessary machinery and contacts with local farmers to ensure a smooth and speedy logistics process,” he added.
EverEnviro adds value to the paddy straw by converting it into clean and renewable energy, while avoiding the pollution caused by burning it. The company is developing that value chain logistics capability to harvest, procure and bring the feedstock to the CBG facilities, Girdhar noted.
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