In a recent interview with Renewable Watch, Sunil Rajan, Chief Executive Officer, WOG Technologies, discussed about strategy to scale industrial effluent-to-bio-CNG projects under SATAT and the National Bio-Energy Mission. He noted strong adoption of EtE and ZLD-integrated biogas plants in food, brewery and agro-industrial clusters, while financing gaps are being bridged through PPP models, blended finance and climate-linked funds. Looking ahead, WOG is exploring green hydrogen from wastewater, sewage-to-hydrogen and carbon capture from biogas plants, alongside AI- and IoT-enabled operations.
What is your roadmap to expand industrial effluent into bio-CNG domestically?
India has set a net zero 2070 target to reduce emissions and ensure a smooth transition to renewable sources of energy. To meet this goal, the government has introduced groundbreaking policies under Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) and the National Bio-Energy Mission, and WOG Group is leveraging these initiatives to convert industrial effluents into compressed biogas (bio-CNG) domestically.
We are scaling our proven effluent-to-energy platforms by integrating anaerobic digestion and upgrading units for bio-CNG. Several of our projects are under development in different parts of the country. Though we remain open to prospects in diverse sectors, for now, we are focusing on clusters of food, brewery and agro-industries/waste sectors across Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat, aligning projects with oil marketing companies (OMC) offtake under SATAT.
WOG has a five-pronged innovation suite. Which of these technologies has seen the greatest commercial traction in India, given the policy and feedstock landscape here? Are there particular sectors or states driving adoption?
WOG Group provides a full range of premium industrial services in the delegated management of water, wastewater services, and renewable energy generation for industrial and municipal clients. We offer a vast range of services and innovative solutions, catering to the unique needs of our clients.
Our technologies are innovative and efficient, with applications across diverse industries. However, among all our technologies, the effluent-to-energy (ETE) solutions and zero liquid discharge (ZLD)-integrated biogas plants have seen the greatest traction. The demand is particularly strong in distilleries, breweries, sugar and food processing hubs where policy and waste volumes align.
Financing remains a key challenge for waste-to-energy (WtE) projects. How are you engaging with banks, non-banking financial companies, or green funds to improve access to capital?
WtE projects not only help to solve the problem of improper waste management but also turn the discarded end product into a valuable resource. While the world has realised the significance of such projects, obtaining funds still remains a challenge due to various reasons. To address this issue and ensure that funding does not become a roadblock, we are actively structuring projects on a public-private partnerships (PPP)/ build, own, operate, and transfer model, partnering with green infra funds and climate finance platforms, while engaging banks with viability gap funding support. In addition, we co-develop blended finance models with international ESG-linked investors. These approaches, so far, have yielded positive results in the widespread adoption of WtE projects, and we will keep pushing boundaries to unlock their full potential.
Given the evolving landscape of the circular economy and decarbonisation, what emerging technologies or market segments are you exploring next within renewable energy?
The circular economy and decarbonisation landscape are still evolving, and there is tremendous scope for innovation in these areas. Increasing awareness and growing acceptance among people, together with government policies, are paving the way for a sustainable and low-carbon future.
We, at WOG Group, are quite optimistic about the emerging market and the opportunities in this domain. Considering the current scenario, we are exploring green hydrogen from wastewater streams, sewage-to-hydrogen pathways and carbon capture from biogas plants, with an aim to position ourselves at the nexus of the circular economy and low-carbon fuels.
Bio-CNG adoption in India often struggles with feedstock supply and offtake guarantees. How is WOG addressing these bottlenecks?
There are substantial challenges on the path to make India a low-carbon emission country. What is important is to innovate and utilise opportunities at hand to making the best use of them. And that is what WOG Group does to ensure a consistent supply of feedstock and offtake guarantees for bio-CNG projects.
We mitigate risk through cluster-based sourcing contracts with industries and municipalities, while offtake is de-risked via long-term tie-ups with OMCs, industrial gas users and city gas distributors. Diversifying our sources has worked well for us and continues to strengthen the resilience of our bio-CNG value chain.
What role do you see for artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT), or digital monitoring in scaling WtE operations in India?
Integrating technology increases efficiency, reduces downtime and improves overall efficiency. It is a necessity of the current time when technology has become an indispensable part of our lives. Engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) technology helps conceptualise, execute, and manage the projects.
WOG Group deploy IoT-enabled monitoring for digester health, predictive AI for yield optimisation and tech-ready systems for carbon credit validation, ensuring scalability, compliance and investor confidence.
How is WOG leveraging its India base to expand internationally—through partnerships, tech transfer, or project development?
Our goal is to offer unique and sustainable solutions to industries and municipalities across the globe. We are steadily making progress in this direction by exporting our proven EtE and ZLD biogas technologies to Southeast Asia, the Middle-East and Africa through strategic partnerships, EPC collaborations and tech-licensing, positioning India as our research and development and execution hub.
