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Noting that it is the need of the time to switch to alternative fuels, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Saturday said, “efforts are on to introduce ethanol in construction and agriculture equipment."
India imports petroleum products worth ₹10 lakh crore to meet the requirements in the energy and power sector, and in the next five years, the demand may go up to ₹25 lakh crore. Gadkari pointed out that this is going to put pressure on the economy. The minister was speaking at a conference in Pune.
"Alternative fuel is the future. After electric scooters, cars and buses, soon we will have electric tractors and trucks. I am going to launch these soon," Gadkari said.
Diesel-based agriculture equipment should be made petrol-based and flex engines can be converted to run on ethanol, he said, adding that efforts are on to introduce ethanol in construction equipment as well.
The minister further stressed the need to shift from sugar production to ethanol. The rise in sugar demand across the globe is temporary. When the price of crude oil goes up to $140 per barrel, Brazil produces ethanol from sugarcane, increasing the demand for sugar from India. When the price of crude oil dips to $70 to $80 per barrel, Brazil starts producing sugar."
“When crude oil becomes cheaper, sugar prices will also come down drastically."
Urging Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to set up ethanol pumps in Pune, to help farmers sell the fuel directly, he said, "We have decided to add 20% ethanol in petrol in our country. Accordingly, we will need 1,000 crore litres of ethanol. Our sugar factories don’t have the capacity to produce that amount of fuel. Sugarcane prices will not come down in the near future, but sugar prices may drop. Hence, it is time that the sugar industry switches to ethanol. We have to talk to the petroleum minister and find a way."
Speaking about the problems faced by the sugar producers in the state, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, who addressed the conference virtually, said "We have to follow Brazil for market research. They (Brazil) conduct surveys and accordingly choose a crop in a year. Times are changing and accordingly, we should adopt technology. The future will be ethanol."
(With inputs from agencies)