Advanced BioFuels USA

bySupriya Vohra (Quartz) While India is making a push for ethanol-blended petrol, by incentivizing sugarcane-derived ethanol, concerns remain about the water-guzzling nature of the sugarcane and fair remuneration for farmers.

On Nov. 2, the center, as part of its ethanol blending programme (EBP), approved a higher price for ethanol that is derived from different sugarcane-based raw materials. This was done for the ethanol supply year from December 1, 2022, to October 31, 2023, which coincides with the current sugar season. The Centre, in a press release, stated that the higher price of sugarcane-derived ethanol for oil marketing companies (OMC) is a bid to benefit distilleries and will “help in early payment to cane farmers.” The central government’s cabinet committee on economic affairs approved this higher price.

India is keen to reduce its dependence on imported crude oil, and ethanol-blended petrol is part of its strategy. In addition, ethanol, a biofuel, is a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels. Also, as it is derived from sugar and starch-rich agricultural byproducts, it helps provide an additional use of these products and boosts incomes for farmers.

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The National Biofuel Policy of 2018 (pdf) gives impetus to increase ethanol production from sugar molasses, sugarcane juice, sugar-containing materials (sugar beet, sweet sorghum) and starch-containing materials (corn, cassava, damaged food grains such as wheat, broken rice, rotten potatoes) that are unfit for human consumption. Currently, India has reached a 10% blending target, …

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India is one of the largest producers of sugarcane in the world, with Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka being the major sugar-producing states. There are over 700 sugar mills in the country, with a capacity to crush 340 lakh metric tonnes of sugar and an annual turnover of Rs80,000 crores. The sugar industry provides livelihoods for nearly five crore (50 million) people.

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Sugarcane is also a water guzzler. According to a March 2020 report by Niti Aayog, one kilogram of sugar needs 1,500-2,000 litres of water. A large part of Maharashtra, however, falls under a drought-prone, rain shadow area.

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The harvested cane is taken to the factory, where it is crushed and separated into sugarcane juice, molasses, filter cake, and bagasse. Sugarcane juice is used to make sugar, bagasse is used in electricity generation and filter cake is used as a fertilizer. Molasses, a by-product of sugarcane, is usually used in ethanol production.

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A July 2020 research paper titled Water-food-energy challenges in India: political economy of the sugar industry published in Environmental Research Letters, states that India’s aspiration of 20% ethanol blending by 2025, if dependent on molasses, will require 1320 million tons of sugarcane, 19 million hectares of additional land and 348 billion cubic metres of additional water. With the increased production of sugarcane, there would be 161 million tonnes of extra sugar production. The paper, by researchers at Stanford University in the United States, recommends using only sugarcane juice for ethanol production (versus directly from molasses), which would not require additional water and land resources.

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Farmers voice their issues, demands

Despite the water-guzzling nature of the crop, farmers prefer to grow sugarcane. One of the main reasons for it is that it is the only crop that offers a guaranteed Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP).

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It also requires the mills to pay the farmers within 14 days of the cane’s delivery. Earlier in February, the Maharashtra government allowed sugar mills to pay farmers in two installments—the first installment within 14 days of delivery, and the second based on the final recovery of the product. However, the farmers are not happy with this latest decision.

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Farmers say that their loans and other expenses have to be paid as per usual, so the payment in installments, based on unknown variables, does not benefit them. READ MORE