In terms of ethanol blending, India has come a long way, thanks to government policies, and this has been acknowledged by various countries around the world. From time to time, Brazil has also applauded India for its success in ethanol blending.
Recently, during an interview with ET Now, Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, spoke about the success of ethanol and what the Brazilian ethanol body, Unica, told him about it.
Speaking on the progress on ethanol, he said, “It is phenomenal. Unica president was here for Bharat Mobility, he told me that what India has achieved in the last few years, we took 20 years to achieve, but I was equally gracious with him, I said but we learnt from you.”
“It is truly a remarkable story. Today, we are diversified; we have gone from sugarcane to maize and other crops,” he added.
Ethanol: What Bharat achieved in last few years, Brazil took 20 years- Brazilian!
आज इथेनॉल ब्लेंडिंग का आंकड़ा 19% को छूने के करीब है। भारत दुनिया का ‘तीसरा सबसे बड़ा मेट्रो रेल नेटवर्क’ बन गया है, दूसरे स्थान की ओर अग्रसर है।
यह PM @narendramodi जी कार्यशैली का ही परिणाम है… pic.twitter.com/XB6qQ9IE84
— Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) January 26, 2025
The blending percentage has increased significantly from 1.53% in Ethanol Supply Year(ESY) 2013-14. Recently, India achieved highest-ever ethanol blending in December 2024. In the ongoing ESY 2024-25, ethanol blending in petrol reached 18.2 percent in December. Additionally, in order to boost the ethanol production, Government reduced price of FCI rice for distilleries producing ethanol to Rs 2,250 per quintal, which was earlier fixed at Rs 2,800 per quintal.
The government has set a target of 20% ethanol blending by ESY 2025-26 and is confident of achieving this goal. However, to meet this target, approximately 1,016 crore liters of ethanol will be required, totaling 1,350 crore litres when accounting for other uses.
The push for ethanol blending is part of the government’s effort to reduce reliance on imported fuel.
Through the sale of ethanol, the cash flows for sugar mills have improved resulting in prompt payment to cane farmers. In last 10 years, sugar mills have earned revenue of more than ₹ 94,000 crores from sale of ethanol which has added to the bottom line of sugar mills.
Production of ethanol has led to proportionate reduction in the import of petrol or crude oil which has resulted in saving of foreign exchange for India.
For more details and in-depth insights, keep reading ChiniMandi, your go-to source for the latest news on the Ethanol Industry.
