Highlights| Mumbai CNG supply crisis: Supply restored after two days of chaos across MMR

Many CNG pumps in Mumbai remained closed throughout the day due to a sharp drop in gas pressure, the Mumbai Petrol Dealers Association reported. The disruption also affected some city buses running on CNG, intensifying the travel crunch across the metropolitan region.

Mumbai’s CNG network faced a major disruption on Sunday after a GAIL pipeline inside the Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers (RCF) complex suffered damage. Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL) said the incident hit gas supply to its Wadala City Gate Station (CGS), the crucial hub that feeds CNG to the entire city.

The breakdown brought road transport to a standstill on the first workday of the week, with operations at all 486 CNG pumps across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region abruptly halted.

Mumbai has around 130 to 140 CNG pumps, including MGL’s own facilities. Many of these pumps have been non-functional since morning due to low gas supply pressure, Petrol Dealers Association (Mumbai) president Chetan Modi told PTI.

He added that when he spoke to MGL officials, he was informed that work to restore normal CNG supply at the damaged RCF pipeline is underway. “I have kept my own pump shut since morning as there is no gas supply pressure,” Modi said.

RCF share price: ₹152.15, up 1.3%, trading near its intraday high of ₹153.55.

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers (RCF), within whose compound the pipeline was damaged, saw positive momentum as markets weigh the temporary nature of the disruption.

GAIL share price: ₹184.20, up 0.4%, near its intraday high of ₹185.10.
Despite the Wadala pipeline damage affecting MGL’s supply, GAIL’s stock held ground as the company confirmed repair work is underway. Home PNG supply remains unaffected.

MGL share price: ₹1,232, down 1.72%, trading near its intraday low of ₹1,231.50.

The drop comes hours after CNG and PNG supply disruption in Mumbai due to damage to the GAIL pipeline at Wadala. Investors are reacting to concerns about the short-term impact on MGL’s operations and city transport services.

MGL said piped natural gas (PNG) to homes remains unaffected. The company has prioritised residential supply and advised industrial and commercial users to temporarily switch to alternative fuels.

Social media post shows massive chaos at Mumbai Airport (CSMIA) with Uber, Rapido and other cab services running scarce due to the ongoing CNG shortage.

Passengers are stranded outside terminals with long waits and hiked prices.

Mumbai has about 30,000 taxis and 2.80 lakh autorickshaws, while the MMR has over 4.70 lakh autos relying on CNG. The transport union warned that if supply doesn’t resume soon, most autos and taxis may stop operating by evening.

24 hours, no gas, no assurance. Kilometer-long queues at Wadala as Mumbai’s CNG crisis hits a breaking point. Taxi and auto drivers are stranded with empty tanks. Supply remains uncertain.

Transport unions report the ground situation is worsening. Shashank Rao, president of the Mumbai Auto Rickshaw and Taxi Men’s Union, said there has been no update from MGL, and only vehicles with leftover CNG are still running.

Mumbai’s transport system has been badly affected as most autos, taxis, app-based cabs and several BEST buses depend on MGL’s CNG supply, which remains disrupted.

GAIL issued a statement on the incident. In a statement to ET now, the company said the damage was caused by a third party, and the affected pipeline has been fully evacuated as a safety step.

Deepak Gupta from GAIL said work is in full force and they are aiming to finish restoration within 24–30 hours.

According to Gail, they will resume full supply to MGL as soon as the repair work is done. There is no impact on PNG used in homes. The disruption largely affects CNG users and customers. They expect a volume loss of around 1.5–2 mmscmd because of the incident.

Mumbai’s public transport network has been severely impacted, as a vast majority of autos, taxis, app-based cabs and several BEST buses run on CNG supplied by MGL.

Mumbai has around 30,000 kali-peeli taxis and 2.80 lakh autorickshaws, while the wider Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) has more than 4.70 lakh autos dependent on CNG.

According to MGL, the supply pipeline from GAIL to the Wadala CGS was damaged on Sunday morning. While the company briefly managed to restore gas flow to a limited extent, officials said the pressure remained significantly low through the day.

MGL told CNBC-TV18 that it expects supply to be fully restored by Tuesday. It further added, supply will normalise once supply is restored to CGS Wadala.

Industrial and commercial customers in affected areas have been advised to temporarily switch to alternative fuels.

CNG supply to Mumbai was affected due to third-party damage to GAIL’s main gas pipeline inside RCF compound, impacting MGL’s City Gate Station at Wadala. CNG stations across Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai may not operate, affecting autorickshaws, taxis including Ola and Uber services, and some public transport buses that run on compressed natural gas.