India has witnessed a notable expansion of the city gas distribution network (CGD), which now spans across 307 geographical areas (GAs). This expansion translates to a vast footprint of infrastructure ranging from pipelines and meters to stations. Managing infrastructure and associated assets at such a scale necessitates technology-enabled processes that ensure efficiency, reliability and safety. Over the years, CGD players have adopted various technologies and digital platforms to enhance asset management and strengthen operations and maintenance (O&M). These have assisted in the effective monitoring and maintenance of assets, faster identification of problem areas, and prevention of leakages and asset malfunctions. Moreover, advanced systems are facilitating end-to-end monitoring, digital visualisation and data-driven decision making. At a recent Indian Infrastructure conference, Rakesh Agrawal, Vice President – CNG Marketing and O&M, Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL), shared his views on the company’s digital transformation journey, and highlighted how technology-driven platforms and digitalised systems are enhancing asset reliability and strengthening O&M. Edited excerpts…
IGL’s digital experience
IGL has steadily advanced its digital journey since its establishment in 1998. With a network spread across four states, 11 GAs and 32 districts, IGL operates 958 compressed natural gas (CNG) stations, 960 compressors, 2,440 km of steel pipelines, nearly 28,000 km of medium-density polyethylene pipelines, around 3.13 million domestic connections, and 12,000 industrial and commercial customers.
IGL embarked on its digital journey in 2005 with SAP enterprise resource planning (ERP), a transactional journey focusing on activities such as accounting and materials management. During 2011-13, the SAP customer relationship management (CRM) system was implemented to manage consumer-facing processes, followed by the adoption of a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system in 2016. While IGL’s adoption of new technologies was initially focused on internal systems, followed by processes and operational technologies, it has gradually been extended to consumer interfaces.
Technology-driven asset monitoring and consumer interfaces
IGL has integrated SCADA systems across its CNG stations, field regulating stations, sectionalising valves (SVs) and piped natural gas systems, enabling the real-time monitoring and control of assets. With SCADA, IGL can remotely monitor pipelines, track pressure levels, and even shut down compressors or change supply rates from control centres. This includes the central control room at Kaka Nagar and 11 local control rooms across the Delhi National Capital Region and one across all GAs, serving an important role in ensuring regional responsiveness. This two-way communication setup allows IGL to take preventive action and enhance overall asset reliability.
To improve internal workflows tied to asset management, IGL has also developed the bill watch system for the real-time tracking of vendor bills and the file tracking system to enable staff to locate and follow documents across departments.
In CNG retail, IGL resolved a long-standing issue where bills could not be generated directly from dispensers. By linking dispensers with point of sale (POS) machines, the company automated billing at various stations, ensuring accuracy and reducing manual errors. This innovation not only improved customer experience but also provided precise data on asset usage, enabling better planning and maintenance. CNG stations and remote SVs are now under CCTV surveillance, supported by Milestone and I2P platforms. Analytics-enabled alerts notify IGL of intrusions or unusual activities, protecting critical infrastructure. In addition, IGL has implemented a queue management system at busy CNG stations. Using artificial intelligence (AI)-driven tools, the system estimates waiting times, helping optimise asset utilisation and reduce congestion.
Integrated O&M platforms and mobile applications
As a major step forward, IGL’s O&M processes have now been integrated with mobile and web applications. Earlier, manual logbooks were maintained, with around 13-14 entries being made for a single complaint. Now, complaints are logged digitally, reducing paperwork to near zero. The system also generates annual operating plans (AOPs) automatically and provides end-to-end visibility into the complaint cycle.
As assets became digitally connected, they became prone to the risk of cyber threats. In this regard, IGL is undertaking efforts to fortify its IT infrastructure with firewalls for phishing protection and internet of things (IoT)-based secure communication systems. These systems are also being upgraded to safeguard against cyber threats.
Consumer-centric smart technologies
Enhanced customer services also result in O&M efficiency. IGL’s CRM-enabled 24/7 call centre resolves a significant number of complaints on call, while tickets are generated when field staff are required. The call centre facility is available for domestic, industrial and commercial consumers. Tracking these tickets helps identify recurring asset-related issues. Complaints, requests and feedback were integrated into the SAP system, enabling better customer service. In a notable example of digital integration, approximately 60-70 per cent of complaints were related to delayed bill delivery. By shifting to digital delivery via email and WhatsApp, IGL reduced such complaints to under 10 per cent.
Apart from this, the Samadhan App has transformed O&M processes. O&M complaints ranging from mechanical, electrical, instrumentation or civil concerns are routed through an application that automatically sends them to the right party. Spare part stock checks, penalty management and AOP creation are also integrated into the system. By reducing manual logbooks and enabling real-time complaint resolution, the app has made O&M more responsive and data-driven. For example, if there is a need to replace a flow meter at a dispenser, the part code can be entered into the system to check the availability of units at the store.
Smart metering, payments and data intelligence
IGL has introduced over 400,000 automated meter reading (AMR) meters and 15,000 prepaid meters. Though costs are a challenge compared to diaphragm meters, smart meters provide accurate data, improve billing efficiency and strengthen asset monitoring. In the context of smart metering for domestic consumers, a radio frequency (RF) device is used to collect data from AMR meters, whereby a staff member conducts a walk-by in the area, captures the data via RF frequency and transmits it to the servers, enabling automated billing.
IGL has also adopted a first-of-its-kind payment automation for CNG customers in India. Earlier, challenges were faced with the issue of receipts from dispensers, leading to the issuance of manual bills. In a move to address this, IGL introduced the innovative PineLab system, which is a digital payment system linking dispenser data with POS machines and SCADA systems. This facilitates accurate reconciliation of fuel dispensing with payments, while also feeding valuable data into asset management systems.
IGL is undertaking efforts to reduce cash-based payments while providing customers with multiple payment options. The company has achieved 100 per cent digital payments for domestic customers and 60-65 per cent cashless transactions for CNG.
Asset management is further strengthened by the general service platform, a business intelligence tool that integrates data from around 15 applications into an umbrella application, enabling the generation of consolidated reports. This eliminates the need for multiple spreadsheets or manual reconciliations.
Challenges in digitisation
IGL is dealing with a vast amount of legacy data that needs to be integrated with new systems, which is often a tedious and challenging task. Moreover, with the rapid pace of technological change, keeping up with these new technologies, pricing differences and business use cases has also been challenging. Other areas of concern include cybersecurity, resistance to change and limited reliable network availability, especially in remote locations. Along with this, high implementation and maintenance costs and the risk of technology becoming obsolete further complicate digital adoption.
Conclusion
Looking ahead, IGL’s digitisation roadmap focuses on AI and machine learning-based systems. As an initial step, the IGL Metri App, a chatbot with AI agents, has been introduced. Predictive maintenance is also being adopted, leveraging the historical data available through the SCADA systems to analyse parameters such as temperature, pressure, lube oil condition and vibration to forecast equipment failures. This allows proactive maintenance planning and reduces downtime. The company is also deploying IoT-based transmitters and IP-based systems for enhanced cybersecurity and real-time pipeline integrity monitoring. Further, optimising resources and cost savings remain at the core of these initiatives.
