Ethanol Blending in India Surpasses 1,000 Crore Litres in 2024-25
Significant Milestone in Ethanol Blending
New Delhi, Dec 18: Over 1,000 crore litres of ethanol have been successfully blended during the Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2024-25, achieving an impressive average of 19.24% ethanol in petrol. Notably, in October, the blending rate reached 19.97%, as reported to Parliament on Thursday.
The National Policy on Biofuels, initially set in 2018 and revised in 2022, has accelerated the goal of achieving 20% ethanol blending in petrol from 2030 to the Ethanol Supply Year 2025-26, which spans from November 1, 2025, to October 31, 2026.
Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Suresh Gopi, informed the Rajya Sabha that Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) met the 10% ethanol blending target in petrol by June 2022, five months ahead of schedule for ESY 2021-22. The blending rates have progressively increased to 12.06% in ESY 2022-23 and 14.60% in ESY 2023-24.
To ensure a steady supply of feedstock and enhance infrastructure for ethanol production, the government has implemented various measures. These include expanding feedstock options, establishing an administered price mechanism for ethanol procurement under the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) program, reducing the GST rate on ethanol to 5%, and introducing several Ethanol Interest Subvention Schemes (EISS).
Additionally, the government allocated 52 Lakh Metric Tonnes (LMT) of surplus rice from the Food Corporation of India (FCI) for ethanol production for both ESY 2024-25 and ESY 2025-26. Furthermore, 40 LMT of sugar has been designated for ethanol production in ESY 2024-25, along with unrestricted production from sugarcane juice, B-Heavy Molasses, and C-Heavy Molasses for ESY 2025-26.
The government also introduced the "Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN (Jaiv Indhan- Vatavaran Anukool fasal awashesh Nivaran) Yojana 2019," which was amended in 2024. This initiative aims to promote advanced biofuels, including Sustainable Aviation Fuel projects, utilizing lignocellulosic biomass and other renewable feedstocks.
According to the minister, the scheme provides a maximum financial assistance of Rs 150 crore for commercial scale projects and Rs 15 crore for demonstration scale projects.