Ethanol blending saved Rs 99,000 cr forex since 2014: Puri

India’s ethanol blending program has saved Rs 99,014 crore in foreign exchange since 2014, Union petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.

Puri also said that the government has achieved a 15 per cent Ethanol blending target so far, a combination which he wants to take to 20 per cent by Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2025-26.

Speaking at the International Conference on Bioenergy, Puri said increasing use of ethanol in automotive fuels has allowed the country to substitute 17.3 million metric tonnes of crude since 2014 that would otherwise have been imported.

Similarly, carbon emissions have also been lowered by 51.9million metric tonnes in the past decade, he said. The figures are till July 14, 2024.

The cumulative amount paid to the distillers by oil marketing companies since 2014 stood at Rs 1.45 trillion, while payments to farmers amounted to Rs 87,558 crore.

The minister said E20 petrol (petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol) is now available at over 15,600 outlets in the country. Meanwhile, the government had also launched E100 fuel back in March. It includes 93-93.5 per cent ethanol blended with 5 per cent petrol and 1.5 per cent co-solvent, which is a binder. 

With its high-octane rating, typically between 100-105, E100 is being pegged by the government as ideal for high-performance engines, ensuring improved efficiency and power output.

Puri said the government has resumed the supply of rice from the Food Corporation of India to ethanol distilleries, allowing them to purchase up to 23 lakh tonnes through e-auctions from August 2024 to October 2024. 

The government had provided an additional incentive of 9.72 per litre for ethanol supplies from maize, 8.46 per litre from damaged rice during August 2023 and 6.87 per litre from C-heavy molasses during December 2023.