The government has issued a draft notification proposing amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules to formally incorporate higher blends of ethanol in petrol, paving the way for the introduction of E85 and E100 fuel in India.
According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the draft notification includes provisions for E85 fuel, a blend of 85 per cent ethanol in petrol, as well as E100, which would allow vehicles to run fully on ethanol.
The draft rules have been opened for public comments, following which the government will take a final decision.
The move comes after the nationwide rollout of E20 fuel in April last year.
The government is pushing for higher ethanol blending in petrol to reduce India’s dependence on crude oil imports, an issue that has gained greater urgency amid supply disruptions linked to the ongoing Iran-US conflict.
The draft notification proposes a revised classification system for fuels based on higher ethanol blends.
Under the proposal, the description of petrol would change from E10/E to E10/E20, while E85 and E100 would be explicitly brought within the regulatory framework.
Similarly, biodiesel references would be updated from B10 to B100, representing 100 per cent biodiesel.
The draft also seeks to standardise emission-testing parameters and technical terminology.
In addition to fuel-related revisions, the draft proposes increasing the gross vehicle weight threshold from 3,000 kg to 3,500 kg in select vehicle categories.
It also revises the hydrogen fuel classification from “Hydrogen + CN” to “Hydrogen + CNG”.
Higher ethanol blending presents technical challenges for automakers and consumers alike.
Cars manufactured after April 2023 are E20-compliant and materially compatible with ethanol blends of up to 30 per cent. However, higher blends would require manufacturers to redesign specific engine components.
Because ethanol increases the likelihood of moisture, vehicle makers would also need to account for accelerated corrosion in engine systems.
Since ethanol has a lower energy density than petrol, increasing ethanol content is expected to reduce engine output and fuel efficiency.
The higher production cost of flex-fuel vehicles is also likely to be a factor for consumers.
If E85 is rolled out, fuel stations across the country will need separate storage tanks for regular petrol and ethanol-blended petrol, along with dedicated dispensing mechanisms for each fuel type.
