In News
- As per the Economic Survey 2021-2022, the ethanol supply in the country to enable blending with petrol is likely to reach 302 crore litres by the end of Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2020-2021.
About
- The government has been promoting the use of ethanol as a blend stock with main automotive fuel like petrol in line with the National Policy on Biofuels (NBP) -2018 under the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme.
- India advances the target for 20% ethanol blending in petrol (E20) to 2025 from 2030. The ethanol blending target for ESY 2021-22 is 10%.
What is Ethanol?
- An organic chemical compound produced from biomass (mainly from sugarcane in India).
- Since ethanol is produced from plants that harness the power of the sun, ethanol is also considered a renewable fuel.
- High oxygen content allows engines to combust fuel more effectively.
Benefits & Significance
- Improves energy security & self-sufficiency measures.
- Reduce the country’s crude oil import bill.
- Helps decrease emissions & creates rural & urban employment opportunities.
- Strategically important as goes well with government initiatives like Make in India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Skill Development, etc.
- Offers great opportunity to integrate with targets of doubling farmers income, import reduction & waste to wealth creation.
Challenges
- Manufacturing efficient vehicles & time consuming regulatory clearances.
- Unregulated emissions of carbonyl emissions & no reduction in NOx.
- Expensive due to higher evaporative emissions from fuel tanks & dispensing equipment.
- Availability of sufficient feedstock & restrictions on inter-state movement of ethanol.
Related Indian Initiatives
- Pradhan Mantri Jaiv Indhan-Vatavaran Anukool fasal awashesh Nivaran (JI-VAN) Yojana
- Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources (GOBAR)-DHAN Scheme
- National Policy on Biofuels 2018
- Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme
- Repurpose Used Cooking Oil (RUCO)
Suggestions
- Address non-availability of domestic feedstock.
- Companies need better storage, handling, blending & dispensing infrastructure.
- Formulate a single-window clearances system to accord speedy approvals.
- Emissions change monitoring & assessment to enhance emission reduction potential.
Source: TH
