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Mr P. Chidambaram

Our Bureau

New Delhi, Nov. 12 The Government has directed the Petroleum Ministry and the oil marketing companies (OMCs) to ensure implementation of mandatory blending of five per cent ethanol with petrol.

Speaking to newspersons after the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) meeting, the Home Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, said, “The CCEA has reiterated its earlier decision of mandatory five per cent blending of ethanol with petrol.”

The Minister said that the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry and the public sector OMCs have been instructed to implement the decision. He said groups will be set up by the Ministries concerned to ensure that there are no supply dislocations and also ensure that the programme is implemented without any hitch.

To review the current implementation of ethanol-blended petrol programme, the Petroleum Minister, Mr Murli Deora, has called a meeting of the public sector oil marketing companies on Friday. At present, the programme is being implemented in 14 States and three Union Territories.

The OMCs have finalised tenders for ethanol in these States.

As against a requirement of about 180 crore litres of ethanol for three years, the OMCs have contracted for 146.6 crore litres. So far, 58.42 crore litres of ethanol have been procured as on October 15.

For the purpose, the landed cost of ethanol is compared with benchmark price of landed cost of petrol at a particular location, including transportation, all taxes and duties paid. At present, the OMCs are procuring ethanol at a basic price of Rs 21,500 per kilo litre (Rs 21.50 per litre).

The Petroleum Ministry in September 2006 had directed the OMCs to sell five per cent ethanol blended petrol subject to commercial viability as per Bureau of Indian Standards specifications in entire country except North-East, Jammu & Kashmir, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep with effect from November 1, 2006.

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