Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday met with Brazilian Energy Minister Bento Albuquerque in Delhi and emphasised on greater cooperation on the usage of Ethanol and reducing carbon emissions across various sectors to strengthen the economies of both the countries.
Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Gadkari, interacted with a Brazilian business delegation, led by Brazilian Minister of Mines and Energy Bento Albuquerque, comprising of Brazilian industry representatives from the Sugar, Ethanol and Automobile industries along with the representatives from the Indian Automobile Industry.
Earlier on March 20, Nitin Gadkari urged the sugar producers to reduce the production of sugar and shift to the conversion of sugar into ethanol, in line with the realities of changing times and the needs of the nation.
In Mumbai, the Minister, while addressing the Sugar and Ethanol India Conference (SEIC) 2022, organized by Chini Mandi, a news and information portal for the sugar and allied industries, said that it is good for our future to reduce the production of sugar and increase production of ethanol as we are rice-surplus, corn-surplus and sugar-surplus. If sugar production goes ahead as it does now, it will be harmful to the industry in times to come, he said.
The Minister said that the economics of ethanol is superior to that of vehicles run by diesel or petrol.
He informed that the Government of India has decided to open biofuel outlets for citizens to fill ethanol and that cars, scooters, motorcycles and rickshaws can be available on flex engines.
He asked the ethanol manufacturing sugar factories to open ethanol pumps in their factories and other areas that can bring in 100% ethanol-run scooters, auto-rickshaws and cars and thus increase ethanol consumption, reduce pollution, and bring down imports and also provide jobs to people in villages.
"Ethanol is a green and clean fuel; we are producing 465 crore litres of ethanol at present. However, when the E-20 programme gets completed, our requirement will become around 1,500 crore litres. Moreover, in the coming five years, when flex engines get ready, ethanol requirement will become 4,000 crore litres," said the Union Minister.
The Minister said India has promised that it will stop the sugar export subsidy after December 2023. To get a reasonable price for sugar, we must discourage sugar production.
The Minister further said that the government is thinking of ways to increase the use of ethanol in the aviation sector and in the Indian Air Force.
( With inputs from ANI )
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