Mumbai, Oct. 30 -- Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said on Tuesday that the government had no immediate plan to raise ethanol blending in petrol beyond the current 20 per cent. Speaking at the inauguration of the 29th Energy Technology and Innovation Meet in South Goa, he said 20 per cent remained the government's target for now.

The government has promoted ethanol-blended petrol to reduce dependence on imported crude oil, which is a major contributor to the country's current account deficit. India has rolled out E20 fuel, comprising 20 per cent ethanol and 80 per cent petrol, for compatible vehicles.

Puri said misinformation about E20 was being circulated, including claims on social media that vehicles had stopped or suffered breakdowns because the government had halted sales of the blended fuel. He said vehicles compliant with the applicable standards were designed to use E20, while older vehicles manufactured before 2003 had encountered some problems.

The minister also attributed some reported difficulties to the transportation of blended fuel, saying tankers used for the product had also been used to transport other materials. He said the introduction of E20 had helped the Union government save Rs. 1.6 tn, of which Rs. 1.4 tn had been returned to farmers. He said the policy had expanded the role of farmers from food producers to contributors to the energy supply.

Separately, the Road Transport Ministry notified changes to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, allowing flex-fuel vehicles capable of running on blends up to E100, or nearly pure ethanol. Such vehicles can use higher blends including E85, which contains 85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent petrol, as well as E100.

Major automakers, including Toyota Motor Corporation, Tata Motors and Hyundai Motor Company, are developing flex-fuel vehicles for the Indian market. Policymakers are supporting the technology as part of efforts to reduce the country's fossil fuel import bill. Puri also cited daily traffic of 60 mn vehicles at dispensing stations while rejecting claims of widespread engine damage.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Construction World.