A need to upscale production of flex-fuel engine vehicles

“India is ready from the supply side to launch E20 and the E20 fuel will be available from April 2023. “The target for 20 percent blending has been advanced by 5 years, from 2030 to 2025.” said Shri Hardeep S. Puri, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Housing and Urban Affairs. However, he said that there is a need to massively upscale the production of flex-fuel vehicles in the country.

The Minister was addressing the gathering at the plenary session on “A giant leap for biofuels: ethanol blending and the SATAT scheme” at SIAM’s International Conference on Biofuels: A Pathway Towards a Sustainable Future. Several dignitaries, including Mr. Andre Aranha Correa Do Lago, Ambassador of Brazil to India, and representatives from the energy and auto industries, were present at the event.

The Minister assured the automobile manufacturers that, as the world’s fastest-growing and most robust major economy, there will be guaranteed consumer demand for flex-fuel and E20-compatible vehicles. The government of India, as has been reiterated, will provide comprehensive support from the supply, policy, and demand side for making the sale of flex-fuel E10 and E20 vehicles a viable business proposition for the auto industry, he said.

During the event, Shri Hardeep S. Puri further elaborated upon the efforts of Government to promote production of biofuels in the country. He mentioned about the twelve commercial plants and ten demonstration plants of 2G biorefineries (using agricultural waste as substrate) that have been proposed to be built under the Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN (Jaiv Indhan-Vatavaran Anukool Fasal Awashesh Nivaran) Yojana in regions with adequate biomass supply. He also spoke about Asia’s 2G ethanol biorefinery, which was unveiled by Prime Minister in Panipat, Haryana in August, 2022.

Shri Hardeep S. Puri highlighted that the forex saved by the government by substituting imported petroleum fuel with Biofuel and natural gas with CBG is being used to subsidise other low-carbon mobility technologies, such as EVs, forming a self-reinforcing loop of the clean energy transition.

In his concluding remarks, Shri Hardeep S. Puri assured support to the auto industry from India’s leading OMCs and refineries, whose combined marketing, refining, and R&D capabilities can accelerate the synergies.