Oil industry pushes ethanol as cooking fuel to cut dependency on LPG

The petroleum industry on Tuesday urged industry players to develop ethanol as a clean cooking fuel for Indian households as part of efforts to reduce dependence on imported LPG and expand biofuel use.

R S Ravi, Director (Downstream) at the Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry (FIPI), made the appeal while addressing the All India Distillers' Association (AIDA) conference, highlighting ongoing research into ethanol-based cooking stoves.

"A lot of work is happening" at agencies like the LPG Equipment Research Centre (LERC) and various IITs to develop ethanol-compatible and efficient cooking stoves, with prototypes likely to be ready soon, Ravi said.

He sought active support from the All India Distillers Association (IDA) and its members on two key fronts: connecting with manufacturers to scale up production of these stoves, and more importantly, developing a viable supply chain to deliver ethanol directly to households. 

 

"This is a different ballgame. As of now, the way you are supporting the oil industry is by supplying bulk It needs to change," Ravi stated.

"How this supply chain is going to be developed, what form it needs to be delivered, the form factor is very critical."  He added, "Can AIDA come forward and give us ideas in terms of how we make this ethanol as a cooking fuel possible in India?"  Ravi's remarks came against the backdrop of India's successful rollout of 20 per cent ethanol blending (E20) in petrol. He credited the distillery industry for enabling the programme and a recent government notification mandating the sale of E20 petrol with a minimum Research Octane Number (RON) of 95 from April 1, 2026.

The shift to higher-octane E20 petrol is expected to improve vehicle power output and efficiency while addressing past concerns over lower-octane blends.

Ravi also made two other requests to the ethanol industry -- accelerating production of isobutanol (IBA) for blending in diesel and developing technological readiness for ethanol-to-Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) routes -- but laid special emphasis on the cooking fuel initiative. 

Research institutions are already working on ethanol stoves as a cleaner alternative that could complement or partially replace LPG, particularly in rural and semi-urban areas.

The FIPI official noted that transitioning ethanol from bulk industrial supply to household-level distribution would require innovative logistics, suitable packaging or dispensing formats, and last-mile delivery mechanisms.

India has been aggressively pushing ethanol blending in petrol to cut crude oil imports, save foreign exchange, reduce emissions, and support farmers.

Extending the biofuel ecosystem to cooking fuel could further diversify ethanol demand and enhance energy security.

Ravi called for collaborative efforts between the oil industry and distillers to make ethanol-based cooking a practical reality in the country.