40–50 Lakh Tonnes Sugar May Be Diverted for Ethanol Production
12-Aug-2025 04:16 PM
New Delhi. The Central Government may allow sugar mills and distilleries to use 40-50 lakh tonnes of sugar for ethanol production in the marketing season of 2025-26.
The Joint Secretary (Sugar) in the Union Food and Public Distribution Department says that the government is setting an ambitious target of blending ethanol in petrol and is taking steps to achieve it. On the other hand, efforts are also being made to keep the price of sugar stable at the national level.
According to the Joint Secretary, if the industry has any surplus stock of sugar left after meeting the domestic demand and consumption and the need for ethanol production, then permission for its export can be considered. According to official sources,
the government is also working on a comprehensive and detailed roadmap for promoting ethanol production during the next five years.
Under this, emphasis will be laid not only on increasing the production of ethanol from sugarcane but also on other sources.
This also includes sweet oregano (sweet sorghum). It requires less water than sugarcane for irrigation and its field trials are being conducted in Karnataka and Maharashtra.
The allocation of broken rice for ethanol production is likely to be increased. The government has planned to reduce the share of broken grain material in its procured rice stock from the current 25 percent to 10 percent in the new marketing season starting from October 2025.
Its objective is to include rice with 10 percent broken content in food purposes while 25 percent broken rice is to be allocated for ethanol production.
The target of blending 20 percent ethanol in petrol in India was achieved in July, while that target can be increased in the next marketing season.
Compared to last year, this time there has been a good increase in the sowing area of sugarcane in Maharashtra and Karnataka and the weather and monsoon conditions are also favorable.
This is expected to increase the production of sugarcane and sugar. Due to increased use of sugar in ethanol production, the burden of stock on the industry may decrease.