Govt hikes ethanol price to aid blending

The Cabinet’s committee on economic affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday cleared an increase in the price of ethanol, a by-product of sugar, which state-run petrol retailers buy from millers, a move that will aid the country’s fuel-blending programme and ensure higher prices for farmers to cover increased cultivation costs.

- Zia Haq

NEW DELHI:

The Modi government’s fuel-blending programme aims to reduce dependence of the world’s third-largest oil importer on overseas petroleum purchases.

The administered, or federally set, price of ethanol derived from C heavy molasses, a by-product of cane crushing, for the ethanol supply year 2024-25 (November 1, 2024 to October 31st 2025) has been fixed at ₹57.97 per litre, up from ₹56.58 per litre earlier, which is an increase of 2.5 per cent. On June 5, 2021, Prime Minister Modi announced that India was advancing the target year for 20 per cent ethanol-blending in petrol to 2025-26 from 2029-30 set previously.