the objectives of the GBA ,” Chaudhari added .
Companies including Indian Oil Corporation , Bharat Petroleum and GAIL ( India ) expressed optimism the alliance would help in creating a greener future .
“ Besides Boosting India ' s Existing Biofuel programs , GBA is also creating income opportunities for farmers , reducing carbon emissions , increasing energy security , and developing a robust Indian ecosystem ,” said Bharat Petroleum statement .
Many companies in India are working towards setting up compressed biogas ( CBG ) plants . Reliance Industries , which recently became India ’ s largest bioenergy producer , plans to establish 100 CBG plants in the next five years , consuming 5.5 million tonnes of agro-residue and organic waste .
domestic feedstocks ( including agricultural residues that otherwise are burnt ). A collective effort from all involved organizations will lead to effective and full implementation of India ’ s biofuels blending programme .
Policy Support
India ’ s National Policy on Biofuels 2018 , amended in 2022 , sets targets for 20 % ethanol by 2025- 26 and 5 % biodiesel blending by 2030 . India sets , and regularly updates , fixed pricing for ethanol based on feedstock type which helps ensure sales and reduced its Goods & Service Tax from 18 % to 5 %. India also provides an interest subvention scheme for establishing new or modifying existing facilities .
The Roadmap for Ethanol Blending in India 2020-25 provides guidance to meet the target of 20 % blending of ethanol in petrol by 2025-26 . Apart from molasses and damaged food grains , surplus sugar and grains are used to increase ethanol production . Biodiesel feedstocks are limited to nonedible oilseeds , used cooking , animal tallow and other non-food oils . The Indian government has estimated GHG reductions from ethanol at 22 MtCO2eq over between 2014 and 2022 but has yet to establish a GHG measurement system .
Supported by these policies , ethanol for blending in gasoline production and demand nearly tripled between 2018 and 2023 and now stands at near 12 % ( 7 % on an energy basis ). Sugar cane provides most ethanol production with the remainder from food grains such as maize and surplus rice stocks determined by the Food Corporation of India . To diversify feedstocks beyond sugar cane , India provides separate pricing for maize-based ethanol and includes ethanol produced from agricultural residues such as cotton stalks , wheat straw , rice straw , bagasse and bamboo . Increasing the fleet of vehicles capable of accepting higher ethanol blending levels will require additional attention as India pursues its 20 % blending target .
India is encouraging flex-fuel vehicles and retrofits are possible for older
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