Govt mulls 10 pc ethanol blending in petrol

New Delhi, May 15 (UNI) The Government is planning 10 per cent ethanol blending in petrol, Minister of Petrol and Natural Gas Murli Deora said today.

''Based on availability, the government may consider introduction on 10 per cent ethanol blending in petrol,'' Mr Deora told reporters here.

At present, five per cent ethanol is blended with 95 per cent of petrol. The total requirement of ethanol by PSU oil marketing companies is about 5,60,000 kilolitres per annum in the notified states and territories.

''Ethanol is the renewable source of energy and usage of ethanol-blended petrol should be encouraged as it reduces the green house gases which causes a grave threat to our eco-system.,'' Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat said during the launch of five per cent ethanol-blended programme.

Mr Shekhawat also inaugurated Shaheed Matbar Singh Negi filling point, a petrol/diesel station allotted to the family of the martyr of December 2001 Parliament attack Matbar Singh Negi.

Ethanol-blended petrol is a green fuel that reduces the atmospheric impact of fossil fuels, and is becoming increasingly popular in several countries, including Brazil, the United States and Europe.

Liquid ethanol or ethyl alcohol is produced by fermenting almost any material that contains starch such as potatoes, sugarcane, corn and many others.

The Ministry had initiated the programme of blending five per cent ethanol with petrol as a multi-pronged benefit to the country.

Initial trials were carried out at Manmad and Miraj in Maharashtra and at Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh.

Subsequently, the first phase of EBP was launched from January 1, 2003 in nine sugarcane producing states such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and four Union-- Daman-Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Pondichery and Chandigarh.

However, due to drought and flood conditions during 2003-04 and 2004-05, availability of ethanol became inconsistent. With good monsoon during 2005-06, there was a bumper crop in sugarcane and availability of ethanol has increased considerably.

''Sugar manufacturer associations approached our Ministry for re-launching the EBP programme on an all-India basis. They have also assured that sufficient quantity of ethanol will be available to the oil companies on a sustained basis and that the EBP programme should be extended on an all-India basis,'' the Minister added.

''We have reviewed the proposal of ethanol manufacturers and issued notifications for implementation of EBP on all-India basis except in Jammu and Kashmir, North-Eastern states, Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshdweep where Ethanol cannot be made available due to logistic reasons,'' Mr Deora said.

UNI