Chhattisgarh signs MoU to set up India's 1st ethanol plant under PPP model

Chhattisgarh government on Tuesday signed a contract execution (MoU) for the country's first ethanol plant to be set up in the state under the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

As per the official release, the contract was signed by Bhoramdev Cooperative Sugar Factory Kawardha and Chhattisgarh Distillery Limited's subsidiary NKJ Biofuel for a period of 30 years.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said that setting up of ethanol plant will prove to be important in ensuring timely payment of sugarcane price to farmers and ensuring full utilization of sugar factory capacity.

"The establishment of the ethanol plant will generate direct and indirect employment opportunities and will form the basis for economic prosperity in the region. The present government of Chhattisgarh has kept the issues related to farmers and their development work paramount. The State government was the first to waive the agricultural loans and in view of the interest of the sugarcane farmers, the ethanol plant is being set up by the PPP model as a permanent solution to the economic hardship of sugar factories," Baghel said.

He added that this is the first example in the country to set up an ethanol plant by PPP model, and Chhattisgarh will also have an important contribution in the production of biofuels in the country by setting up an ethanol plant in the state.