Ethanol blending in India exceeds 19% in 2024-25
What's the story
India has achieved a major milestone by achieving an ethanol blending of 19.2% in petrol during the Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2024-25, which runs from November to October. The achievement comes ahead of the government's target of reaching a 20% blending rate by October 2026 under the National Policy on Biofuels. As of October 2025, India had stored over 77 crore liters of ethanol stock.
Progress report
Ethanol blending targets and achievements
The PSU Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) received some 1,003 crore liters of ethanol during ESY 2024-25. Of this, about 1,022 crore liters were consumed to achieve the 19.2% blending target. This is a significant jump from previous years where India achieved a blending rate of 12% in ESY 2022-23 and 14.6% in ESY 2023-24.
Cost analysis
Ethanol pricing and production
The price of ethanol produced from sugarcane juice/syrup was ₹65.61 per liter in ESY 2024-25. For B heavy molasses (BHM) and C heavy molasses (CHM), the rates were ₹60.73 per liter and ₹57.97 per liter, respectively. Ethanol produced from damaged food grains was priced at ₹64 per liter while maize-based ethanol cost ₹71.86 per liter in the same supply year.
Policy measures
Government's initiatives for ethanol production
To ensure sufficient feedstock availability for ethanol production and meet the 20% blending target by October 2026, the government has approved allocation of 52 lakh tons (LT) of surplus Food Corporation of India (FCI) rice for ethanol production. This is applicable for both ESY 2024-25 and ESY 2025-26. The government also approved diversion of 40 LT of sugar for ethanol production in ESY 2024-25.