Ethanol production capacity to increase by 25% in India

The government on said the overall ethanol production capacity in India is expected to go up by 25 per cent to 1,250 crore litres by the end of this year, as proactive steps have been taken for faster clearance of projects. A single-window clearance has been put in place wherein ethanol projects seeking interest subvention and environment clearances are given faster clearance.

Around 225 projects have been benefited so far, he said, speaking at a conference on “Fuels for future’ organised by industry body Assocham.

 India has doubled ethanol blending with petrol to 10 per cent in the last two years. Ethanol blending will reach 12 per cent this year and meet the target of 25 per cent by 2025.

Out of 1,000 crore litre capacity that India has today, sugar and grains-based ethanol is in the ratio of 70:30, and these capacities are not only meeting the requirement of fuels but also all other industry uses including portable alcohol.

The official said that not only sugarcane growers, farmers growing grains are also getting benefitted from ethanol making, as they are getting better rates for broken rice.

Besides sugar, the government has allowed the use of broken rice for ethanol production. However, there are concerns about the availability of grains, he said.

The official mentioned that the government is keen to diversify the basket of ethanol in multiple ways. One way is generation of 2G ethanol where Indian Oil Corporation has already commissioned one plant in Panipat.

Sugar Technologists’ Association of India (STAI) President Sanjay Awasthi, GAIL India Executive Director Atul Kumar Tripathi and ICRA Ltd senior Vice President and Group Head Shamsher Dewan also spoke about greener fuels and challenges ahead.