Centre dismisses claims of imminent E-25 petrol rollout: Report

New Delhi: The Central Government has dismissed reports regarding an imminent rollout of E-25 petrol, clarifying that no decision has been made to increase ethanol blending past the existing E-20 threshold. According to an NDTV report citing government sources, any prospective increase in blending levels will be contingent upon rigorous scientific testing and technical validation.

Officials emphasised that motorists have absolutely no reason to worry about E-20 petrol, which has been successfully utilised for over two and a half years following comprehensive evaluations and trials. This clarification arrives amidst intensifying public discourse regarding how higher ethanol concentrations affect vehicle performance and fuel economy.

The report noted that the shift towards ethanol-blended fuel has been executed in a gradual, phased manner. Currently, approximately 20 crore petrol-powered two-wheelers and nearly 20 lakh petrol four-wheelers are operating on ethanol-blended fuel across the country.

Earlier this month, the Ministry released a 10-point clarification on the ethanol-blending programme, asserting that petrol containing up to 20% ethanol is fully backed by international precedents, scientific research and regulatory safeguards.

The Ministry also rejected claims that manufacturing a single litre of ethanol consumes 10,000 litres of water. It clarified that only surplus rice, released after fulfilling all national food security mandates, is channeled into ethanol production. Furthermore, ethanol distilleries typically require just 3 to 5 litres of process water for every litre of ethanol produced, with facilities increasingly implementing Zero Liquid Discharge systems to recycle water.

In addition, the government highlighted that maize, which currently constitutes over 40% of the ethanol supplied under the scheme, demands far less irrigation than paddy and is being actively incentivised through enhanced Minimum Support Prices (MSP). Dismissing allegations that E-20 is an unproven fuel, the Ministry reiterated that ethanol-blended fuels have been standard globally for decades.

IANS