Ammana Bio sets up ethanol unit

Ammana Bio Pharma Limited, a major supplier of ethanol to industry majors like IOC, BPCL, RIL and HPCL, announced on Tuesday the setting up of the first Indian ethanol unit derived from the grain crop sorghum(Sorghum bicolour), the sweet variety of which is used mainly as livestock fodder.

Outlining the details of the project, B K Murthy, executive director, said, "Our total investment in the unit is Rs 20 crore. The revenues that we expect to generate will reach Rs 6 crore a year from this project. Ethanol will help conserve precious foreign exchange for the import of crude oil by five to 10 per cent."

Ethanol or fuel alcohol is traditionally derived from molasses, but the huge demand-supply gap has forced firms to look for innovative methods in producing ethanol. Sweet sorghum, unlike sugarcane, can be harvested in 100 days as compared to the first cut of sugarcane, which requires 11 months.

"The new unit will be self-supported with cogeneration by using captive bagasse and press mud for achieving zero discharge of effluent. We also plan to get into selling carbon credits since this unit qualifies under the clean development mechanisms," Murthy said.