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India's fuel retailers buy ethanol from sugar mills to blend with gasoline and they were paying higher price for ethanol produced from juice and B-heavy molasses
BCL Industries Ltd on Monday announced bagging a Rs 339-crore ethanol supply order. Additionally, its subsidiary company Svaksha Distillery has also secured an order of Rs 222 crore to supply ethanol, BCL Industries said in an exchange filing. While BCL has to supply 4.96 lakh litres of ethanol, its arm will supply 3.24 lakh litres to the oil marketing companies. BCL Industries is the only company in India and the South Asian region to have a forward and backward integrated distillery ethanol plant.
Sugar major Balrampur Chinni Mills Ltd (BCML) said that sugar will continue to be the primary focus despite expanding its ethanol production by 50 per cent to approximately 33 crore litres this season between November and April. A top company official revealed that the company has no immediate plans to venture into sugar retail. "Our goal is to strike a balance between sugar and ethanol production to maximize profitability and ensure sustainable growth, based on market conditions," BCML Promoter and Business Lead Avantika Saraogi told PTI. She is the daughter of BCML Chairman and Managing Director Vivek Saraogi. "The company foresees a 33:66 ratio between ethanol/alcohol and sugar for the year. Last year, the share of ethanol revenue was about 28 per cent," she said. BCML's decision to optimize its product mix is driven by a combination of factors, including fluctuating sugar prices and the government's ethanol blending policy. Saraogi pointed out that the country's sugar consump
The 2022-23 ethanol supply year will end on October 31, a month ahead of the earlier schedule. This will align it with the sugar production season
The production in the 2023-24 sugar season, according to the current emerging consensus, is expected to be somewhere around 30-31 million tonnes
India on Saturday announced the launch of the Global Biofuel Alliance and urged G20 nations to join the initiative with a plea to take ethanol blending with petrol globally to 20 per cent. Speaking at the G20 Summit session on 'One Earth', Prime Minister Narendra Modi also proposed to launch the 'G20 Satellite Mission for Environment and Climate Observation' and urged leaders to start working on 'Green Credit Initiative'. "Today, the need of the hour is that all countries should work together in the field of fuel blending. Our proposal is to take an initiative at a global-level to take ethanol blending in petrol up to 20 per cent," he said. "Or alternatively, we could work on developing another blending mix for the greater global good, one that ensures a stable energy supply while also contributing to climate security," Modi said at the session attended by US President Joe Biden, Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak among others.
Sugar is the most highly controlled commodity in the Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) basket
Increased demand for ethanol for blending with petrol and diesel will change the agriculture economy of India making farmers "urja daata", Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Tuesday while launching the world's first BS 6 (stage II) electrified flex fuel-based vehicle, which can run on ethanol blends of beyond 20 per cent. Compared to the higher contribution of the manufacturing and services sectors, the agriculture and allied industry's contribution to India's GDP is only 12 per cent while 65 per cent of the population is dependent on agriculture, the minister for road transport and highways said. The ethanol industry is a boon for farmers. The demand for ethanol will grow in the country. It will change the agriculture economy of India. "Our farmers will not only just be ann daata (food giver) but urja daata (energy provider)," he said. Gadkari exuded confidence that with the demand for ethanol, the share of agriculture to the GDP will also grow. "I am very happy that the day the
The company has already tied up in this regard with Nikhil Gadkari-led Manas Agro and Infrastructure on Monday to convert various effluents discharged into energy and value-added products
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said he will unveil a 100 per cent ethanol-fueled variant of Toyota's Innova car on August 29. The Union minister, who has been exhorting automakers to come out with alternative fuel-powered and green vehicles, had last year launched a hydrogen-powered car, Toyota Mirai EV. "On August 29, I am going to launch the popular (Toyota) Innova car on 100 per cent ethanol," Gadkari said while addressing the Mint Sustainability Summit here. This car will be World's first BS-VI (Stage-II), electrified flex-fuel vehicle. Gadkari said that he started taking interest in biofuels in 2004 after the petrol price hike in the country and visited Brazil for this purpose. He opined that biofuels can do wonders and save a lot of forex which is being spent on the import of petroleum. "If we want to become Atamnirbhar (self-reliant) we have to bring this oil import to zero. At present it is Rs 16 lakh crore. This is a big loss to the
Widely used in Europe, biodiesel refers to biodegradable fuel traditionally manufactured from vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled restaurant grease
Doubts crop in over the viability of achieving 20% ethanol blending
State-owned FCI has sold 13.05 lakh tonnes of rice for conversion into ethanol till July 10 in the current marketing year ending November and has earned a revenue of Rs 2,610 crore, the government said on Wednesday. "Supply of surplus stock of rice from central pool by FCI for conversion into ethanol was started in the year 2020-21," Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti said in a written reply to Lok Sabha. According to the data furnished in the reply, the revenue generated by FCI by selling surplus rice for production of ethanol stood at Rs 98 crore in 2020-21, 2136 crore in 2021-22 and Rs 2610 crore till July 10 in 2022-23 ethanol supply year (December-November). The lifting of rice stood at 0.49 lakh tonnes in 2020-21, 10.68 lakh tonnes in 2021-22 and 13.05 lakh tonnes till July 10 in 2022-23 supply year. The government has been implementing Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme wherein oil marketing companies (OMCs) sell petrol blended with ...
BMI says that there is currently a fast development of additional capacity to produce ethanol in India, where the biofuel is made mainly from sugarcane
Indian Oil and two domestic engine makers are actively working on 5 per cent ethanol blending in diesel, a senior official of the country's largest oil firm said on Monday. Indian Oil Corporation Director (R&D) SSV Ramakumar said that experimental work is going on at its laboratory and the R&D centres of the two engine manufacturers. "Two key Indian heavy-duty diesel engine makers, Indian Oil and one of the other oil marketing companies are very actively working on blending 5 per cent of ethanol in diesel," he said in an event organised by automobile industry body SIAM. He noted that one of the main apprehensions is that the blending might have some issues with the fuel injectors. "So, we are keenly experimenting and seeing and establishing the effects of this ethanol blending. I think in the next six months, you are going to hear something collectively from us," Ramakumar stated. He noted that ethanol blending in diesel is important as it is the most used fuel in the ...
The Himachal Pradesh government will invest 50 per cent equity in an ethanol plant to be established at Jeetpur Behri in Una district by HPCL at a cost of Rs 500 crore, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said. Full cooperation would be extended to Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd(HPCL) for setting up the 30-acre plant, a statement quoted him as saying on Tuesday. He directed the district administration to start land acquisition for the approach road from Bhanjal within 10 days. The chief minister also directed the district administration to provide an additional 20-acre land for the plant on the request of the company. Sukhu said the plant would provide employment and self employment opportunities to the local people and farmers from Kangra, Hamirpur and Bilaspur. Neighbouring districts of Punjab would also benefit from the grain-based ethanol plant. The company has assured that it will take the chief minister's proposal to the board of directors.
The plant will eventually produce enough jet fuel to power thousands of flights per year, according to Summit Agricultural, run by entrepreneur Bruce Rastetter
Oil minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday exuded confidence of meeting the target of supplying petrol mixed with 20 per cent ethanol by 2025, five years earlier than the previously planned roll-out in 2030. Petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol was rolled out at select petrol pumps in 11 states and Union Territories in February as part of a programme to increase use of biofuels to cut emissions as well as dependence on foreign exchange-draining imports. At present, 10 per cent ethanol is blended in petrol (10 per cent ethanol, 90 per cent petrol) and the government is looking to double this quantity by 2025. "I am sure we will be able to supply 20 per cent ethanol blended petrol by next (fiscal) year," he said. India saved as much as Rs 41,500 crore in forex outgo from 10 per cent blending besides benefiting the farmers, he said at a biofuels conference here. Puri said India achieved blending of 10 per cent ethanol in petrol in June 2022, five months ahead of the schedule. "We
Move will see China, Russia, others collaborate with India on emerging fuel tech, energy modelling, and transition goals
The government is planning to create a carry over stock of ethanol for the next year anticipating a rise in demand for E20 fuel in the country, according to a senior food ministry official. E20 fuel is a blend of 20 per cent ethanol with petrol. The government aims to achieve the 20 per cent ethanol blending target by 2025. "Ethanol blending is going well. Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have started dispensing E20 fuel in about 100 outlets in 31 cities in the country. We have started E20 fuel, if it goes well then the requirement will be more," Additional Secretary in the food ministry Subodh Kumar said. Like sugar, the government "plans to create a carryover stock of ethanol" with OMCs and distilleries for 2023-24 ethanol year (December-November) and more sugar would be diverted for the same, he said. The government has kept the 12 per cent ethanol blending target in the ongoing 2022-23 ethanol year, while 15 per cent for the next year. "About 120 crore litres has been blended wi