Indeed, India just reached an ambitious milestone integrating 20% ethanol into petrol (E20). Remarkably, it got there five years early! This historic milestone ignites fear and hope. The goal is for the country to increase ethanol blending to 15% of gasoline by 2025. The government now boasts that this program has reduced carbon dioxide emissions by a dramatic amount and saved precious foreign exchange. As experts are quick to warn, it can have unintended harmful effects on real agriculture industries.
India has already decreased carbon dioxide emissions by 69.8 million tonnes since 2014 thanks to the implementation of its ethanol blending program. This single initiative has resulted in savings of more than 1.36 trillion rupees, or roughly $1.5 billion, in foreign exchange. Petroleum Minister Hardeep Puri dropped an electrifying bombshell. India plans to implement higher blending ratios gradually, achieving E25, E27, and E30 in successive steps.
Devinder Sharma, a farming sector expert, cautions that this policy could lead to an “agriculture disaster in a couple of years.” He contends that when we convert food crops such as maize to produce fuel, we’re robbing people of essential resources. This evil diversion deepens hunger in a country where millions are food insecure and hungry.
By 2024, India had become a net importer of maize, requiring massive amounts of the crop for ethanol production. As the country approaches its blending targets, it has produced increasing demand for ethanol to boost blending levels. According to the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP), India will require 10 billion liters of ethanol to meet its E20 targets by 2025. Looking forward, demand projections show that demand will increase to 20 billion liters by 2050.
Sandeep Theng from the Indian Federation of Green Energy emphasizes the importance of adopting greener energy sources, stating that “the demand for fuel is only going to increase and shifting to ethanol-blended petrol is absolutely necessary to cut down emissions.”
Even with all these environmental advantages, the current widespread vehicular inadaptability or incompatibility with E20 petrol is an important issue. In fact, a large share of the vehicle population in India today are not compatible with E20. As a result, owners don’t believe the policy is going to work. Hormazd Sorabjee, editor of Autocar India magazine, points out that ethanol has a “lower energy density than petrol and is more corrosive,” raising questions about its practicality in everyday use.
“Why should I be forced to buy petrol that offers less mileage and then spend more to make the materials compliant?” – Hormazd Sorabjee
The Ministry of India has stated that engine tuning and the use of E20-compatible materials can mitigate any decrease in mileage associated with ethanol-blended petrol. Though all these changes are encouraging signs of an industry in transition, many consumers are still unsure of the long-term benefits.
The agricultural impact of producing so much more maize is an important – and extremely contentious – question. A recently released analysis reveals just how fast India’s demand for ethanol from food crops is exploding. To satisfy this requirement, the nation needs to grow an extra eight million hectares of land under maize by 2030.
Ramya Natarajan suggests a balanced approach: “If farmers replace rice or wheat cultivation with maize, that would be sustainable because we have enough surplus of these crops. We need other crops like oilseeds and pulses too.”
While there are efforts to promote ethanol as a viable alternative to fossil fuels, critics highlight that the shift must not come at the expense of food security. The rising procurement prices for ethanol have been noted. According to the Petroleum Ministry, “over time, procurement price of ethanol has increased and now the weighted average price of ethanol is higher than cost of refined petrol.”
“In a country like India, where 250 million people go hungry, we cannot use food to feed the cars,” – Devinder Sharma
India has made great progress in its biofuel efforts. The contentious debate over how to strike a balance between improving environmental benefits and sustaining agricultural practices continues to storm. The government is actively encouraging ethanol blending as a greener, cleaner fuel source and alternative. Simultaneously, it is addressing the food security issue and economic fallout for farmers.