Govt eyes big push for flex fuel vehicles

PTI

New Delhi

The government is looking at stepping up efforts to promote Flex Fuel Vehicles (FFVs) to deepen ethanol use in the transport sector amid disruptions in the world oil market due to the Middle East conflict. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) is scheduled to hold a key stakeholder meeting on Monday to chart out a road map for adopting FFVs in India, according to reliable sources.

The meeting, to be chaired by the Additional Secretary at the petroleum ministry, will be attended by representatives from Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) including Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum, automobile manufacturers and other stakeholders. Discussions are expected to focus on policy measures required to expand ethanol blending with fuels beyond the current mandate.

India at present follows an E20 programme, under which petrol is blended with 20% ethanol. The government is now exploring options to move towards FFVs capable of running on ethanol blends of up to 85%. The renewed push is being considered to cut India's dependence on 

oil imports and enhance energy security given the uncertainties in the global oil market.