Maruti Suzuki opens first biogas plant at Manesar facility

It also earmarked US$54m (INR450 crore) for renewable energy expansion.

Maruti Suzuki India Limited has commenced the operations of its pilot biogas plant at its Manesar facility, allowing the company to utilise its in-house food waste and Napier grass as its energy resource.

The plant was designed to produce 0.2 tons of biogas daily. Its projected output is about 1 lakh standard cubic metres of biogas in the 2024-2025 fiscal year. 

It is seen to offset around 190 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.

Maruti Suzuki said it will use food waste from canteens and Napier grass as raw materials. The pilot biogas plant will provide energy for the manufacturing processes of the Manesar facility. The residual organic manure will be utilised in horticulture, effectively making it a zero-discharge model.

The company also committed US$54m (INR450 crore) for renewable energy initiatives. The funding will be rolled out over the span of three years starting fiscal year 2024-2025.

Prior to this, Maruti Suzuki invested $14.47m  (INR120.8 crore) in solar power and biogas projects. 

It is also on track to add 15-megawatt peak (MWp) solar capacity to its Manesar plant and 20 MWp to the upcoming Kharkhoda plant over the next two years. This will boost the company’s total solar capacity to reach 78.2 MWp by the fiscal year 2025-2026.

“As we ramp up our production capacity from around 2 million to 4 million by 2030-31, we are also accelerating our efforts to increase the share of sustainable and renewable energy sources across our operations. This is in line with Suzuki’s Environment Vision 2050 and government of India’s renewable energy focus,” said Hisashi Takeuchi, managing director and CEO of Maruti Suzuki.

$1=INR83.46