
20% ethanol in petrol
INDIA imports 85 per cent of its oil requirements and the petroleum bill for 2020-21 was a whopping $551 billion. Blending of biofuel ethanol can reduce the quantity of petrol required to run a vehicle. The Union Cabinet's decision to advance the date by which fuel companies have to increase the percentage of ethanol in petrol to 20 per cent — known as the E20 target — to 2025 from 2030 is aimed at cutting the dependence on imported, costly and polluting petrol. At present, the all-India average blending is 9.9 per cent; petrol with up to 20 per cent ethanol will be introduced from April 1, 2023. Derived from sugarcane molasses, corn and rice, ethanol is also considered a cleaner alternative energy source to mitigate carbon emissions.
The roadmap for E20 lists as favourable factors the av...