We have great opportunity from the biodiesel sector: Ethanol producer BCL Industries

Ethanol producer BCL Industries is focusing on green energy and the biodiesel business, and the company sees ample opportunities ahead.

During Q2 FY 25 Earnings Conference Call on October 30, Kushal Mittal, Joint Managing Director at BCL Industries, emphasised on ethanol and biodiesel sector.

BCL industries is establishing a 75 KLPD biodiesel plant in Bathinda, Punjab. Work on the 75 KLPD biodiesel unit in Bathinda is going on at full swing, which once completed will facilitate complete vertical integration and increasing value addition in ethanol production. The plant is to be commissioned in April or May of next calendar. Company also has permissions similarly at Kharagpur and awaiting the clearances.

He said, “We have great opportunity from the biodiesel sector. There is a 5% blending mandate in the country. And the current blending rates are less than 1%. The last blending rates that were released were at 0.3%. So, of course, there is a huge demand and 5% blending mandate is only just the start. So, we’re quite bullish on this sector. And also, since our raw material is pretty – the majority of our raw material equipment is indigenous. So, that should also play to our benefit because we’re extracting oil and it’s not hampering our ethanol production. And it’s only value-addition in terms of biodiesel.”

When asked if there are any peers also involved in biodiesel or if BCL is the only company in this sector, he replied, “See, biodiesel — if there’s a company that’s producing biodiesel, mother oil, that’s not much of a competition. We have our own indigenous oil as raw material. And as I mentioned, there is a huge demand for the same in the country. And I don’t know if any ethanol players are thinking on the same line. So, I think we’ll be the first ones to do this.

“Punjab is no longer a region that is focused on edible oil space. So, even if we continue it and even if government focuses on indigenous oil, there are better states to do business in. So, that’s why the decision was made to exit out of this business and to focus on green energy, biodiesel. We expect that should be a better value addition,” he said while answering on edible oil business.

With over four decades in grain processing, BCL Industries has become a leading producer of grain-based ethanol and ENA in the country. The strategic decision to diversify into the distillery segment, leveraging expertise in grain processing, has shown positive results. Currently, BCL operates two distilleries located at Bathinda in Punjab and Kharagpur with a combined capacity of 700 KLPD. The company recently added 100 KLPD capacity at Svaksha Distillery has reached full utilization and operations are running as planned. As part of the expansion strategy, BCL has recently acquired Goyal Distillery Private Limited, which is located in Fatehabad, Haryana, possessing the necessary land and permissions for establishing 250 KLPD grain-based ethanol units. Goyal Distillery is now a whole-owned subsidiary of BCL Industries Limited. This acquisition will enable the company to set up an additional 250 KLPD ethanol plant along with a power plant that will be used paddy as its primary fuel source. With land and clearances already in place, this plant can be commissioned in nearly half the usual time. This move is expected to significantly strengthen BCL’s position as a leader in the grain-based ethanol manufacturing sector in India.

The company is planning to set up a biogas plant with a capacity of 20 metric tons per day on the newly acquired nine-acre plot near its Fatehabad unit. Where approximately 250 metric tons of paddy straw will be processed daily, this initiative reinforces BCL’s commitment to green energy solutions. Additionally, a new 150 KLPD unit is expected to come up in the coming times in Bhatinda, bringing company’s total capacity to 850 KLPD.

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