‘Cheaper than Cooking Gas’: Gadkari Unveils Ethanol Stove Innovation

May 25, 2026

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(IANS/Mathrubhumi) Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has unveiled an indigenous ethanol-based cooking stove technology that he said can produce cooking flames at a lower cost than commercial LPG cylinders, while also announcing a Rs 40-crore initiative to promote scientific temperament among young Indians.

Speaking at an event in Nagpur, Gadkari said the new technology uses a blend of ethanol and water to generate flames suitable for cooking purposes.

“By mixing 7 per cent ethanol in water, stove-like flames are generated, and it is cheaper than cooking gas. It is indigenous to our country,” the minister said.

The announcement aligns with Gadkari’s long-standing advocacy for ethanol as a sustainable and cost-effective substitute for fossil fuels.

Over the years, he has consistently promoted the use of ethanol across multiple sectors, including transportation and energy, arguing that it can help reduce India’s dependence on imported crude oil while supporting domestic agriculture and clean energy goals.

India currently imports nearly 87 per cent of its crude oil requirements, making energy security a key policy priority.

The government has aggressively expanded ethanol blending in petrol, with blending levels rising from 1.53 per cent in 2014 to 20 per cent in 2025.

Gadkari has been among the strongest proponents of the ethanol-blending programme, describing it as an environmentally friendly and economically beneficial solution for the country.

The proposed ethanol-water stove technology extends this vision to the domestic cooking sector, where millions of households continue to rely on LPG cylinders.

If successfully scaled and commercialised, the innovation could provide a cheaper, locally developed alternative to conventional cooking gas while further strengthening India’s clean-energy ecosystem.

Alongside the energy initiative, Gadkari announced a Rs 40-crore project aimed at nurturing scientific curiosity and innovation among children and young people.

“As technology is evolving, we are also working on a project worth Rs 40 crore to ignite the love for science in the youth and children,” he said. IANS READ MORE

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Excerpt from Business Today: Why Ethanol is being seen as a cleaner fuel

Ethanol is an alcohol-based biofuel produced mainly from sugarcane, maize and agricultural biomass. Compared to fossil fuels, ethanol burns cleaner and emits fewer harmful pollutants such as carbon monoxide and unburnt hydrocarbons.

Supporters of ethanol-based cooking argue that it can offer several advantages:

Lower indoor air pollution compared to kerosene or biomass
Reduced dependence on imported LPG
Support for India’s sugarcane and corn farmers
Potentially lower cooking costs
Cleaner combustion and lower emissions

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Globally, ethanol cookstoves have been tested in parts of Africa and Latin America as alternatives to firewood and kerosene. India’s latest experiment could bring similar technology into mainstream urban and rural kitchens if it proves commercially viable.

Can Ethanol stoves replace LPG?

Experts say large-scale adoption will depend on several factors, including fuel availability, safety standards, affordability and distribution infrastructure.

India already has an extensive LPG ecosystem backed by subsidies and nationwide delivery networks. Replacing or even partially displacing LPG would require reliable ethanol supply chains and consumer confidence in the new technology.

The ethanol stove announcement also reflects India’s wider search for alternative fuels amid volatile global energy markets and geopolitical tensions affecting crude oil supplies.

Gadkari has previously advocated for higher ethanol blending targets, including the long-term possibility of 100% ethanol-compatible fuel systems.

Beyond ethanol, the government has also been promoting green hydrogen, electric mobility, compressed biogas and flex-fuel vehicles as part of its clean-energy transition strategy. READ MORE

Excerpt from Business Today: In a formal appeal addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Grain Ethanol Manufacturers Association (GEMA) has strongly advocated for the introduction of ethanol-based cookstoves as a parallel, clean cooking alternative for both residential households and commercial establishments.

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Pointing to India's burgeoning fuel demand and its vulnerable reliance on foreign energy corridors, the industry body urged the central government to immediately sanction pilot projects to evaluate the operational practicality and economic viability of ethanol cooktops.

How an ethanol stove works

An ethanol cooktop operates on liquid fuel — specifically form-alcohol or agricultural feedstock — dispensing entirely with the need for high-pressure steel cylinders, specialised regulatory valves, or expansive piped gas infrastructure. The appliance functions through a remarkably straightforward mechanism.

Fuel is stored in an integrated, unpressurised burner container and ignited manually to generate a consistent, localised flame. In advanced variants, the liquid ethanol undergoes controlled evaporation to mix uniformly with ambient air before ignition, optimising thermal output and minimising residual waste.

Efficiency & Environmental benefits

According to technical briefs issued by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), these clean-cooking devices achieve thermal efficiency levels of roughly 30 percent, drastically curtailing the reliance on traditional biomass, such as firewood, while mitigating toxic indoor emissions.

Environmental data underscores that ethanol burns cleanly, yielding a visible, high-heat flame that produces neither soot nor smoke. Certain advanced models, including the specialised stove, claim the capacity to burn a single litre of ethanol to sustain continuous cooking heat for up to 15 hours — a performance metric touted as five times more efficient than standard traditional biomass alternatives.

Beyond agricultural ethanol, many of these domestic burners can flexibly operate on methanol due to identical combustion principles, drawing from technologies already deployed across remote European terrains and outdoor expeditions.

Implementation challenges

While the agricultural sector pitches the technology as a timely cushion against external supply shocks, analysts note that completely replacing LPG remains an uphill task for the immediate future. Longitudinal performance assessments published in the journal Energy for Sustainable Development confirm that ethanol cookstoves comfortably match the heat distribution and operational speed of conventional LPG or kerosene systems.

However, systemic hurdles remain. Large-scale domestic availability of retail-grade cooking ethanol is severely restricted, as the vast majority of current domestic ethanol production is heavily earmarked for the government's high-priority transport fuel-blending initiatives. Furthermore, fossil-fuel LPG benefits from decades of deep consumer familiarity and deeply entrenched, last-mile distribution logistics that alternative biofuels cannot replicate overnight. READ MORE

Excerpt from India Today: The new statement revives interest in alcohol-based fuels as an alternative for household kitchens. But can ethanol really replace LPG, and does the science support the claim?

The short answer is yes, but only under specific chemical and engineering conditions.

CAN ETHANOL MIXED WITH WATER BURN?

Ethanol is a flammable alcohol already widely used as a biofuel in automobiles. Unlike LPG, which is a hydrocarbon gas stored under pressure, ethanol is a liquid fuel that burns when enough alcohol vapour mixes with oxygen in air and reaches ignition temperature.

Scientific research shows that the concentration of ethanol is critical. Studies published in the Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries found that low ethanol-water mixtures struggle to sustain combustion because water suppresses evaporation of flammable vapours.

Solutions below roughly 7 per cent ethanol generally fail to maintain a stable flame under normal conditions.

That explains why beverages such as beer, despite containing alcohol, do not catch fire easily.

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However, commercial ethanol stoves do not use such dilute mixtures. They typically operate using highly concentrated ethanol, often above 70-90%, allowing sufficient vapour generation for a clean and continuous flame. At these concentrations, ethanol burns with a blue flame similar to LPG.

Scientists say this is entirely consistent with combustion chemistry. Pure ethanol has a flash point of around 13 degrees Celsius, meaning it can release enough vapour to ignite even at relatively low temperatures. But as water content increases, ignition becomes progressively harder because water absorbs heat and reduces ethanol vapour pressure.

Research on ethanol-air mixtures also shows that combustion only occurs when ethanol vapour remains within a narrow flammability range in air. Too little vapour and ignition fails; too much dilution from water prevents sustained burning.

That means Gadkari’s claim is scientifically plausible if the stove uses sufficiently concentrated ethanol and an efficient burner system designed to vaporise fuel properly. Modern ethanol stoves often use pressurised burners, absorbent fuel cartridges or pre-heating systems to maintain stable combustion and improve thermal efficiency.

COULD IT MAKE COOKING FUEL CHEAPER?

The economics depend on fuel pricing, ethanol production scale and distribution infrastructure. READ MORE; includes VIDEO