biodiesel blending in India is yet to take off.

While biodiesel blending in India is yet to take off, certain biodiesel units have commenced production and are exporting the commodity to US and the EU nations. These units are using used non-edible oils and fatty acids from vegetable oils to produce biodiesel.

“We use non-edible oils and fatty acids from vegetable oils. Our customers are large oil companies and distributors of blended biofuels in the EU and US,” said D S Bhaskar, managing director of the company. Bhaskar, however, refused to share the price realisation from export of the commodity. Naturol has invested about Rs 140 crore in setting up the unit, which is also India’s first biodiesel plant.

Cleancities Biodiesel, another Hyderabad-based company, has set up a 250,000 tonne capacity biodiesel plant in Visakhapatnam. Cleancities’ Rs 200 crore unit, the largest in India, started commercial production earlier this month. “We have got a number of contracts for export to US and Europe and our first shipment of 10,000 tonnes is likely to leave for US later this month. Once blending becomes operational in the country, we will also focus on the domestic market,” said Srinivas Prasad Moturi, chairman and CEO of the company.

Kolkata-based Emami Group has also set up a biodiesel plant in Haldia at an investment of Rs 150 crore. “We have not finalised any deal so far since commercial production is yet to begin, but exports should fetch something in the range of $850-880 a tonne (FOB Haldia). We will process used cooking oil and palm fatty acid distilate to produce biodiesel,” said Aditya Agarwal, director, Emami Group.

The Union Cabinet approved the National Policy on Bio-fuel on September 12, aimed at raising blending of biofuels with petrol and diesel to 20 per cent by 2017. However, currently only ethanol blending (at 5 per cent) with petrol is being implemented and there is no blending of biodiesel. The use of biofuels, which is regarded as a green energy, in petrol/diesel is aimed at reducing the country’s demand for fossil fuels.

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