The Bureau of Indian Standards' specification for 10 % ethanol-doped petrol will be ready by March 2008. The government said that there is going to be a mandatory blending of ethanol up to 10 % in petrol from October 2008. CNBC-TV18’s Swati Khandelwal reports that there are issues.

In less than a year from now, all cars on Indian roads will have to run on ethanol-blended fuel. Ethanol, made from molasses, a by-product of sugar, is seen as one of the ways to cut down on costly oil imports. It is also regarded as a green fuel. The government has set a deadline of October 2008 for oil firms to begin selling 10% blended fuel, also known as e10.

There seem to be several roadblocks to meeting the government’s deadline. To start with, oil firms are unlikely to have an adequate supply of ethanol. In fact, they have been struggling to meet the blending requirements for 5 % ethanol, which is mandatory in some states. Oil companies have so far issued tenders for 1,650 million litres of ethanol. However, the ground reality is the actual lifting so far is only about 220 million litres, as against the doping requirement of 550 million litres for the first year. When e10 becomes mandatory in October, the situation will further worsen, with demand for ethanol expected to jump to 1,130 million litres.

It is not just oil firms, even the automobile industry is not yet ready for e10. Carmakers, like Honda Siel, Ford and General Motors already sell models that can withstand a higher content of ethanol. But others like Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai will have to modify engines.

In America, government subsidies have ensured that nearly 30 million tonne of maize is diverted to production of ethanol. This has led to an increase in global food prices, particularly of wheat. India has its own problems. Sugarcane is a water-intensive crop and increased production will deplete ground water. So, there is an urgent need to look at other alternatives like jatropha and agricultural waste.