The supply of  ethanol – blended petrol from this year marks the beginning of a new era of green transport fuels, The new eco friendly fuel popularly called “gasohol” is expected to contribute towards a cleaner environment and benefit millions of sugarcane farmers. 

The fuel combines petrol with five percent ethanol, obtained from the renewable source of sugarcane molasses available throughout the country. The sustained demand of ethanol for blending in petrol will enlarge the area of sugar cane cultivation and better returns to farmers. Ethanol is also produced from corn, grains, tubers like cassava and bio-mass.

The long-discussed proposal to blend gasoline with ethanol produced from sugarcane and sell the mix as a petrol substitute for auto users became a reality from January 1, 2003. At the moment, the introduction of the new fuel cocktail has been symbolic as it has been restricted to parts of four states- Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. By the end of June 2003, it is hoped that the coverage will be extended to five other states and four Union Territories. Eventually, in all these areas the blend will replace petrol. Motorists and other consumers will have no choice but to use the new mixture when the scheme becomes fully operational. The fuel mix, however, will sell itself on merit. Certainly, a large number of inherent benefits are claimed for the blended fuel, even though some of those may not be readily apparent. It is environmentally friendlier. Experts say that it can replace certain carcinogenic additives that are currently used in automobile fuel. It is very likely that the Government will promote the new fuel through incentives. A central excise rebate of 30 paise per litre of the blended fuel is already given to the customers. It is obvious that all those in charge of the programme will have to go through a learning curve. In the days to come the consumers will also be educated on its superiority over the more conventional fuel. In the initial stage, ethanol to the extent of only about 5 per cent will be mixed with gasoline and experts say that the proportion can be increased upto 25 percent without much alteration to the internal combustion engines used in India.

In the first phase of the project, ethanol- blended petrol is being supplied through retail outlets in nine States and four Union Territories. These states are Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. The four Union Territories include Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Pondicherry. Petrol blended with 5 per cent ethanol would be supplied by petrol pumps all over the country under the second phase towards the end of the year. The content of ethanol blending would be increased to 10 per cent in the third phase of the programme scheduled for 2005.

As the current total consumption of gasoline in these nine States and four other Union Territories is about 4.6 million tons per year, the requirement of ethanol at 5 per cent blend ration works out to 320-350 million liters. The requirement on the national basis is estimated at 500 millio9n litters per year.

Ethanol – blended petrol being supplied in Maharashtra, AP, UP and Punjab will cost 15-20 paisa per liter less that the conventional petrol following 30 paise per liter excise duty relief given by the Union Finance Ministry. The Ministry has notifies that the additional excise duty on petrol has been reduced from the normal rate of Rs. 6 per litre to Rs. 5.70 per litre for petrol to be sold after blending with ethanol.

REASERCH & DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

The issue of blending ethanol with petrol has become a reality after six years of study. As many as six technical committees and four other study groups set up by the Petroleum Ministry had examined the issue of blending ethanol with petrol since 1977. The oil industry commissioned three pilot projects at Miraj and Manmad in Maharashtra and at Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh in 2001.

The success of field trails through these pilot projects has culminated with the Government making it mandatory for the supply of five percent ethanol blended petrol. The Government issued a notification on September 12,2002 for mandatory supply of only 5 per cent ethanol- blended petrol in nine States and four Union territories.

The content of ethanol blending would be increased to 10 per cent in the third phase of the programme scheduled in 2005. The Government has decided to implement another three pilot projects for the purpose after necessary amendments to specifications of petrol made by the Bureau of Industrial Standard (BIS).

The Research and Development (R&D) studies have already begun to evaluate of ethanol with diesel. Diesel above constitutes about 80 per cent of the automobile fuels consumed in the country. Therefore, the Government plans to supply ethanol-blended diesel in the fourth phase of the programme. The Government has already sanctioned Rs. 4 core for R&D studies which are at an advance stage of completion.

India has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Brazil in April 2002 for transfer of technology in the fields of blending ethanol with petrol and diesel at higher proportions. Brazil is the only country in the world to have successfully adopted 100 per cent sugarcane based ethanol as fuel for its automobiles. The current Brazilian legislation mandates blending of ethanol in gasoline in the range of 24 to 26 per cent.

In the USA, blending of ethanol in gasoline is done on environment considerations. Ethanol blending is 10 per cent in gasoline for cities requiring control on carbon monoxide emissions during winter months. The USA provides tax break of about $0.54 per gallon (about Rs. 6.20 per liter) to promote ethanol blending in gasoline.
BENEFITS

Doping of ethanol with petrol supplies extra oxygen for complete combustion which reduces monoxide levels in auto emissions and therefore, it is considered more environment –friendly as it lesser air pollution. The main motive for use of ethanol in petrol is to improve air quality. Compared to motor gasoline vehicles, the ethanol-doped motor gasoline vehicles, the produces lower hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and dioxide emissions.

For now, its biggest advantages are claimed for the macro economy. When fully implemented in all the designated States ( and in course of time all over the country), the programme can confer tangible benefits on the economy confronted by a great uncertainty on the energy front. International oil prices, currently at a new high on fears of a war over Iraq, have tended to be erratic in recent times. For the country, which imports nearly 70 percent of its petroleum requirements, any method of import substitution should welcome. More so when the import substitute-ethanol-is a renewable source of energy available indigenously.

A wealth of data from countries across the globe that have successfully experimented with a similar mixed fuel ought to be reassuring. Tried out in the U.S. and Europe during the Second World War and currently strongly advocated across the European Union, it is however the Brazilian experience with its “gasohol” that is cited to buttress its case in India. There is, in fact a striking similarity between Brazil and India. Like in Brazil, ethanol would be sourced almost entirely from sugar mills in India. The ethanol alternative is actually regarded as a way out for the beleaguered sugar industry faced with mounting stocks and high cost of production. Since ethanol will be produced from molasses, an important by product of the industry, the economics of the sugar industry will improve once the blended fuel scheme takes off. Sugar mills, in the present past, have experimented with co-generation (using bagasse) to produce electricity, often with mixed results. They hope to do better by selling ethanol as a fuel additive.

Bio-fuels are now being seriously viewed from the multi-dimensional perspective of depleting fossil fuels, resources, environmental health, energy security and agrarian economy. The coming years will witness enhanced activities and investments in new technologies and infrastructure for cost effective production. Efficient utilization of bio-fuels is expected to put both oil industry and agriculture on a strong footing apart from benefiting the environment.