The production of fuel-grade ethanol and its supply to oil marketing companies (OMCs) increased by more than seven times from Ethanol Supply Year(ESY) 2013-14 to ESY 2020-21. Encouraged by this performance, the government has decided to advance the target of 20 per cent ethanol blending in petrol from 2030 to ESY 2025-26, said the minister of state in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas Suresh Gopi, in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Thursday.
Under the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme, the blending of ethanol with petrol increased from 38 crore litres in ESY 2013-14 to 302.3 crore litres in ESY 2020-21 with a corresponding increase in blending percentage from 1.53 per cent to 8.17 per cent. During the corresponding period, the consumption of petrol itself has also increased by approx. 64 per cent.The production of fuel-grade ethanol and its supply to Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) has increased by more than seven times from ESY 2013-14 to ESY 2020-21.
The minister stated, in order to achieve the 20 per cent ethanol blending target by ESY 2025-26, the government has taken several measures which include a detailed roadmap for ethanol blending in India; expansion of feedstock for the production of ethanol; remunerative price for the procurement of ethanol under the EBP Programme; lowered GST rate to 5 per cent on ethanol for EBP Programme; amendment in Industries (Development & Regulation) Act for free movement of ethanol across states for blending; interest subvention scheme for enhancement and augmentation of ethanol production capacity in the country; regular floating of Expression of Interest (EoI) by public sector OMCs for procurement of ethanol.
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