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Board Director
Shri Subhash Kumar is an energy industry veteran with four decades’ experience in India and abroad. He superannuated from ONGC as its Chairman and Managing Director and Director Finance in December 2021. He has also served as a member of the board of various group companies, including four equity listed companies – ONGC, HPCL, MRPL and Petronet LNG Limited. During his leadership role at ONGC group he has also been the President of Global Compact India. Mr Kumar has had an outstanding academic career with a master’s degree in commerce from Panjab University, Chandigarh with Gold Medal. He is also a Fellow Member of Institute of Cost Accountants of India and Associate Member of Institute of Company Secretaries of India.
During his roles at ONGC group of companies he has worked with globally acclaimed players operating in oil and gas upstream, midstream and downstream segments. At ONGC Group, he played a pivotal role in the group’s global acquisitions as a key contributor towards the growth of the company’s portfolio from just one overseas asset in 2001 to about 40 assets across the globe. He was also posted in Colombia for managing a joint venture with SINOPEC, a Chinese company and Ecopetrol, the national oil company of Colombia. He as part of Local Management Board, played a crucial role in steering the Joint Venture, establishing key systems which have served as reference for Company’s other global operations.
He was also Member and Nodal Officer of Energy Transition Advisory Committee (ETAC) set up by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. During 2022-23, he was also a Director at ACME Solar Holdings, a company working in renewables space with focus on green hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives in driving Energy Transition during 2023-24. He is Chairman, Advisory Board of Renergy Dynamics Limited. On May 1, 2024, Mr. Kumar assumed the role of Director General, ACE (Association of CGD Entities).
MD – Torrent Gas Limited
Shri Manoj Jain, a Mechanical Engineer with an MBA in Operations Management, is ex-Chairman and Managing Director of GAIL (India) Limited. Before his appointment as CMD, GAIL, Shri Jain was Director (Business Development) of the GAIL. Shri Jain also held positions of Chairman of GAIL Global (USA) Inc. (GGUI), GAIL Global (USA) LNG LLC (GGULL), Konkan LNG Pvt Ltd (KLPL), Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Limited and in CGD Sector, he held positions of Chairman of Mahanagar Gas Limited, Gail Gas Limited and Director of Indraprastha Gas Limited. Shri Jain possesses rich and diverse experience in the areas of Business Development, Projects, O&M, Petrochemicals, Pipeline Integrity Management and Gas Marketing and has insight and knowledge across multiple business units and functional areas.
As Director (Business Development), he was responsible for building GAIL’s business portfolio in India and abroad, Merger and Acquisition, Petrochemical O&M and Expansion, Exploration & Production, R&D, Start–Up, Health Safety & Environment management, Quality Management, Project Development including feasibility study and investment approval for new pipelines, process plants, renewables, etc.
Shri Jain had worked in Operation & Maintenance of Natural Gas pipelines and played a significant role in establishing the National Gas Management Centre (NGMC) and systems and procedures for transmission and marketing of comingled gases. With his consistent efforts and increased thrust on development, GAIL was able to consistently achieve over one million DPNG connections and around 400 CNG stations per year. Shri Jain had active involvement in Govt. of India’s Compressed Bio-Gas initiative and its policies. He also laid foundation for GAIL’s foray into greener alternative fuels like green Hydrogen. Shri Jain joined Torrent Gas as Managing Director w.e.f. 01.01.2024.
CEO - Adani Total Gas Ltd
Shri Suresh is a seasoned professional with 29 years of varied experience in diversified businesses. He has immense experience in Oil and Gas projects as well as major specialization in conceptualising, negotiating, forming and successfully operating city gas distribution businesses and joint ventures. Suresh started his career with Kelvinator (now Whirlpool India) and subsequently worked with GAIL, Mahanagar Gas (JV of GAIL and Shell), and India Gas Solutions (JV of RIL and BP). Prior to joining Adani Gas Ltd, Suresh was working with Reliance Industries Ltd as Sr. Vice President & Head of Commercial of petroleum retail business. Suresh, by profession, is a Cost Accountant and has acquired educational degrees of M.COM, LLB, ACMA, FCS.
Managing Director and CEO - Think Gas Distribution Pvt. Ltd
Shri Abhilesh Gupta is the Managing Director & CEO of THINK Gas, which is the merged entity of AG&P Pratham and THINK Gas. A a leading player in the Indian City Gas Distribution (CGD) business, THINK Gas holds 19 CGD Authorizations awarded by the Petroleum & Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) under the aegis of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG). THINK Gas aims to develop CGD infrastructure and provide natural gas across 49 Districts in the 10 states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, serving around 100 million people.
Mr. Gupta comes with an experience of 27 years across LNG, City Gas Distribution and Power domains in India and Singapore. Previously, Mr. Gupta oversaw global gas infrastructure development for AG&P International Holding Pte Ltd. He also served as CFO at Asian Genco Pte Ltd., a Singapore-based company with 4,000 MW of power generation assets in the hydrothermal and renewable sectors. Backed by investors like Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and General Atlantic, Asian Genco played a critical role in advancing energy infrastructure.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Gupta also served as the General Manager of Finance at Petronet LNG Ltd. During his time there, he played a pivotal role in the financial closure of India’s first LNG terminals in Gujarat and Kerala. A chartered accountant by profession, Mr. Gupta’s extensive career includes significant positions at Indraprastha Gas, Rio Tinto India, and ABB, specializing in investor relations, debt funding, charter agreements, and treasury management.
Executive Director (Commercial) - Gujarat State Petronet Ltd.
Shri Devendra Agarwal is currently Executive Director (Commercial) at Gujarat State Petronet Ltd., Gujarat State Petroleum Corp. Ltd. and Gujarat Gas Ltd. He has been associated with GSPC Group since 2001 & has an experience of over 20 years in the Natural Gas Industry.
Shri Devendra Agarwal has worked on various aspects of the business and has considerable experience in LNG / gas sourcing, gas marketing, gas pricing models, gas pipeline business & city gas distribution business. He has played an instrumental role in the growth of gas trading segment of GSPC Group and has devised various marketing strategies for increasing the market share of GSPC in the market for sale of RLNG in Gujarat. Shri Devendra Agarwal has worked on different agreements across the gas value chain and has an in-depth understanding of LNG Sales & purchase agreement, gas transmission contracts, gas sales contracts, regasification agreements and tie-in agreements.
His important contribution as a part of the Teams involved in execution of long-term SPA for gas sourcing, negotiating of LNG terminal access agreement, third party pipeline access agreement, Gas Sale & Purchase Agreements is noteworthy. Apart from his upstream and midstream roles, he has also been actively involved in development of CGD GAs.
He has recently been tasked with heading Commercial roles at GSPL and GSPC and he has been leading teams effectively and carrying out a wide gamut of activities which include handling Regulatory aspects of pipeline business, management of JVs, discussions with international LNG suppliers, dealing with large gas consumers in Power, Fertilizer, Refinery, Petrochem, CGD among others.
He is also involved in sourcing gas volumes for industrial, domestic & transport segments for GGL. He also takes care of pricing and regulatory functions within GGL. He has been instrumental in strategizing gas pricing for industrial gas consumers to ensure not only retention in major volumes but also maintain competitiveness to alternate fuels.
Director and CEO - Megha City Gas Distribution Pvt. Ltd.
Shri Venkatesh Palimpati is an experienced professional in the city gas distribution sector, currently serving as the Director and CEO of Megha City Gas Distribution Private Limited since October 2021. Prior to this role, Venkatesh was the Business Head at Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL) for a decade, where responsibilities included overseeing city gas distribution and managing international EPC projects in Tanzania and Zambia. Venkatesh began their career as a Project Engineer, focusing on power transmission line construction, and gained initial experience as a Project Intern at Cameron, a Schlumberger company. Venkatesh holds a Master of Science degree in Engineering/Industrial Management from Texas A&M University-Commerce and a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering from Chaitanya Bharathi Institute of Technology.
Shri Subhash Kumar is an energy industry veteran with four decades’ experience in India and abroad. He superannuated from ONGC as its Chairman and Managing Director and Director Finance in December 2021. He has also served as a member of the board of various group companies, including four equity listed companies – ONGC, HPCL, MRPL and Petronet LNG Limited. During his leadership role at ONGC group he has also been the President of Global Compact India. Mr Kumar has had an outstanding academic career with a master’s degree in commerce from Panjab University, Chandigarh with Gold Medal. He is also a Fellow Member of Institute of Cost Accountants of India and Associate Member of Institute of Company Secretaries of India.
During his roles at ONGC group of companies he has worked with globally acclaimed players operating in oil and gas upstream, midstream and downstream segments. At ONGC Group, he played a pivotal role in the group’s global acquisitions as a key contributor towards the growth of the company’s portfolio from just one overseas asset in 2001 to about 40 assets across the globe. He was also posted in Colombia for managing a joint venture with SINOPEC, a Chinese company and Ecopetrol, the national oil company of Colombia. He as part of Local Management Board, played a crucial role in steering the Joint Venture, establishing key systems which have served as reference for Company’s other global operations.
He was also Member and Nodal Officer of Energy Transition Advisory Committee (ETAC) set up by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. During 2022-23, he was also a Director at ACME Solar Holdings, a company working in renewables space with focus on green hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives in driving Energy Transition during 2023-24. He is Chairman, Advisory Board of Renergy Dynamics Limited. On May 1, 2024, Mr. Kumar assumed the role of Director General, ACE (Association of CGD Entities).
Shri Gauri Shankar Prasad Singh is a seasoned energy sector professional with over 36 years of experience at Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), where he led transformational initiatives across diverse verticals including Small Scale LNG, City Gas Distribution (CGD), and Cryogenics. A visionary leader, Mr. Singh has consistently demonstrated the ability to conceptualize and implement innovative, scalable, & sustainable business models and has led several strategic initiatives that have transformed the natural gas value chain in India. Mr. Singh is a Gold Medallist in Chemical Engineering from NIT Srinagar and holds an MBA in Financial Management.
He has been instrumental in establishing two new business verticals at IOCL from the ground up – specifically, (a) Small Scale LNG (LNG At Doorstep), which has revolutionized LNG application across industrial, transport, mining, and CGD segments – establishing India’s first such model and setting the stage for widespread adoption, and (b) the City Gas Distribution (CGD), where IOCL has established itself as a major player. His strategic foresight and regulatory advocacy were pivotal in enabling policy frameworks for LNG as an automotive and bunker fuel. He played a pivotal role in establishing IOCL as a key player in the City Gas Distribution (CGD) business, expanding to IOCL’s presence into 40 GAs including JVs. His work directly enabled regulatory breakthroughs through close engagement with MoP&NG, PNGRB, and PESO.
During his tenure as Executive Director and Head of the Cryogenics Business at IOCL, Mr. Singh led a remarkable transformation—expanding to one of India’s largest cryogenics manufacturing facilities and turning around the business outlook. Under his leadership, the unit played a pivotal role during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 by supporting Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) logistics nationwide. He fostered strategic collaborations with DRDO and initiated pathways for joint efforts with ISRO, strengthening India’s self-reliance in advanced cryogenic technologies. His efforts significantly advanced indigenous manufacturing capabilities in cryogenic containers, aviation refuelling equipment, and LNG/LCNG stations, positioning IOCL as a leader in these domains.
Mr. Singh has represented India on global platforms as a member of the International Gas Union’s (IGU) LNG Study Group, and participating in forums in the USA, Spain, Malaysia, and Japan. He contributed to the IGU’s World LNG Report-2014 & 2015 as a Task Force Members. He has authored and presented papers at international forums on LNG as a transport fuel and innovations in remote gas distribution.
A strong advocate for innovation, policy development, and capacity building, Mr. Singh continues to bring his acumen to ACE’s mission of advancing India’s CGD and gas infrastructure ecosystem.
Disclaimer :- Members are displayed in alphabetical order by name.
