Ethanol blended Motor Spirit despatch flagged off at Bongaigaon Refinery

A CORRESPONDENT

DHUBRI: Chairman of Indian Oil SM Vaidya, flagged-off the dispatch of the first batch of 10% Ethanol blended Motor Spirit (EBMS) at Bongaigaon Refinery via virtual mode recently. The launch marked an iconic moment, as Bongaigaon Refinery is the first among the North eastern refineries to achieve this milestone.

In his address, Vaidya elaborated on the role of bio-fuels and bio-gas in the energy scenario of India and how these two are going to be major game changers for Indian Oil in the near future.

While complimenting Bongaigaon Refinery on being the first among the North-East refineries in achieving this milestone, he stressed on the importance of increasing ethanol blending in the Northeast, where it is still significantly low at only around 2%.

He also shared Indian Oil's future plans for increasing bio-fuel production and supply, which includes a commitment to have pan India 10% Ethanol Blending by the end of next year.

The energy demand in India has been rapidly on the rise, fuelled by economic expansion, urbanization, evolving lifestyles and rise in spending power. While 98% of the fuel used in transportation section is met by oil from crude refining, the balance 2% is met by bio fuels.

India is currently importing 85% of its crude oil requirement. There has been an increased focus on improving India's energy security and to fulfil its commitment in the Paris Agreement to reduce the country's carbon footprint by 30-35% by the year 2030.

The National biofuel policy is one such step in this direction. The 2018 edition of the policy proposes a target of 20% blending of ethanol in Motor Spirit (MS) by the year 2030, which has now been brought forward to 2025.

ED & Refinery Head, Bongaigaon Refinery, SP Baruah who attended the meeting virtually, welcomed Chairman, Indian Oil in his address and thanked him for becoming a part of this momentous occasion.

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