Pune : Cooperative sugar mills in Maharashtra have urged the government to provide financial assistance to upgrade their distilleries into multi-feed facilities. This transformation would allow them to use maize and other grains for ethanol production beyond the sugarcane crushing season, The Hindu BusinessLine.
Most cooperative ethanol projects rely on sugarcane, limiting production to the crushing period. In contrast, states with multi-feed distilleries produce ethanol throughout the year using alternative grains.
To address this issue, officials and experts from the cooperative sector gathered in Pune last week for a brainstorming session. The meeting, chaired by the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) President Harshvardhan Patil, included managing directors of cooperative sugar factories, state sugar federations, and senior government officials such as Sugar Commissioner Dr. Kunal Khemnar. Representatives from the Ministry of Cooperation and the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) were also present.
The discussion focused on strategies to upgrade distilleries for multi-feed operations. Experts highlighted that using maize and other grains would ensure continuous ethanol production, improving financial stability for sugar mills.
Speaking on the issue, Dr. Khemnar stated, “There are over 200 cooperative sugar factories in the country out of which 63 have distilleries producing fuel grade ethanol. However, cooperative sugar mills contribute about 13 per cent in ethanol supply. Their lower contribution in ethanol production in comparison with private sugar mills, is due to insufficient availability of cane based raw materials.”
Cooperative sugar mills usually end their crushing season by March-April. Shifting to grains such as maize would enable year-round ethanol production. The government’s recent increase in the minimum support price for maize has further strengthened its viability. Additionally, OMCS have shown interest in long-term agreements with cooperative mills, prioritizing ethanol procurement from their distilleries.
