Research on 15% ethanol in diesel enters advanced stage: Gadkari

New Delhi: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari on Monday said that the research on blending 15 per cent ethanol in diesel is in advanced stages, and the Centre is exploring the prospects around how to prioritise it based on sound evidence.

Addressing the 12th ‘CII Bioenergy Summit 2024’ in the national capital, the minister urged the industry to focus their research on the most efficient sources of biomass, as well as efficient transportation of that biomass at economical cost.

“Progress on building an ethanol ecosystem - where ethanol pumps can complement ethanol production and launch of vehicles that can run on ethanol are on fast-track in four states -- Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra,” he said.

Ethanol blending in the country has surged from 1.53 per cent in 2014 to 15 per cent in 2024, according to government data. Spurred by this progress, the government has set an ambitious target of reaching 20 per cent blending in petrol by 2025.

“Indian Oil has decided to put 400 Ethanol pump stations. We are holding a meeting with stakeholders on this soon. We are meeting automakers as well including Suzuki, Tata, and Toyota. These automakers have decided to launch flex-engine cars. Other vehicle-makers like TVS, Bajaj, and Honda are ready with Ethanol bikes and are waiting for the Ethanol pumps to come to launch their bikes,” Minister Gadkari noted.

The minister further stated that he is focusing on encouraging an increase in ethanol production in four states where pumps have been announced.