Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

<keyword id="2258380" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Gulf-Petrochem">Gulf Petrochem</keyword> is going to set up an <keyword id="6533570" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ethanol">ethanol</keyword> manufacturing plant in India at the cost of Rs 1,000-crore, said a senior company executive. 

	It has been a decade since the government decided to blend 5% ethanol with fossil fuel to cut vehicular emissions, a measure that was later made mandatory. But India is far from reaching the target, managing at most 2% blending as oil marketing firms say there is not enough ethanol available, reported the Economic Times. 
 

	The country required more that 115 crore litres of ethanol to meet its target. But Indian units manufacture only 80 crore litres, creating a big gap between demand and supply for the product. 
 

	According to ethanol manufacturers who are mostly sugar makers, state levies and the price fixed by the Centre Rs 48.50 a litre is a deterrent to capacity expansion. 
 

	Manan Goel, Gulf Petrochem's group director, told ET: "We want to grow in India. Besides our oil business, we have diversified into steel. Now we want to get into ethanol manufacturing." 
 "States have been inviting <keyword id="6362476" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="investments">investments</keyword> so we are looking for a site where we can get the land closer to the raw material availability," he said. The UAE-headquartered entity Gulf Petrochem, a company promoted by brothers <keyword id="122306" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ashok-Goel">Ashok Goel</keyword> and <keyword id="2550855" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Sudhir-Goyel">Sudhir Goyel</keyword>, has been mainly into oil trading, refining and bunkering. It now wants to enter the ethanol market with a production unit that would make around 60,000 kilolitres of ethanol by 2017-18. 

	While almost 90% of India's ethanol is manufactured from feedstock of molasses, the company may adapt a technology that uses rice husk.
 "There is a big market for ethanol and even at the fixed price the project is viable. The government has indicated that if there is ethanol available at the fixed price, oil marketing companies will buy it," said Brij <keyword id="235220" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Mohan-Bansal">Mohan Bansal</keyword>, <keyword id="210845" type="POSITION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Strategic-Advisor">strategic advisor</keyword> to the company. 

	Bansal said that so far the ethanol manufacturing units have been concentrated in states that produce sugarcane and, therefore, Gulf Petrochem is looking at other states which don't have enough capacity.
 

	It has shortlisted Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh and would finalise a site soon. 
 

	The current government is exploring increasing ethanol content in auto fuels to 10%. 

	 
	(Image: Gulf Petrochem website)

Gulf Petrochem investing Rs 1,000-crore to set up ethanol plant in India

<ul><li>Sugar producing company stocks have rallied up to 25% in the last one month on excitement of double incentive by the government for producing ethanol.</li><li>The government is taking several steps to boost <keyword id="1992365" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ethanol-production" source="Orion">ethanol production</keyword>, which can be used as an alternative to fuel in car engines and thereby reduce air pollution.</li><li>The government has already addressed auto makers to start manufacturing <keyword id="10975219" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="flex-fuel-vehicles" source="Orion">flex fuel vehicles</keyword>, automobiles which can run on ethanol.</li></ul>Most sugar manufacturing companies have witnessed the best year as their share price doubled or even tripled in 2021 led by improving outlook and government measures to support such companies. In the last one year, the government has come out with a slew of measures to encourage sugar mills to produce ethanol. Ethanol is an alcohol-based fuel produced by fermenting the sugarcane juice. Ethanol has been a game changer for the sugar industry In October, 2021, the government announced an incentive to encourage sugar companies to divert excess sugar cane stock in producing ethanol, which can be blended with petrol and used as fuel in vehicles. Besides, this is also a good solution to address the problem of excess sugar production in the country. Stock prices of many sugar companies doubled in 2021. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sugar producing companies </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">% returns in last one month </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">% returns in 2021 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Bannari Amman Sugars </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">25% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">82% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Shree Renuka Sugars </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">22% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">153% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Uttam Sugar Mills </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">21% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">82% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Bajaj Hindustan Sugar </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">17% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">139% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Balrampur Chini Mills </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">16% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">109% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Avadh Sugar &amp; Energy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">15% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">113% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dhampur Sugar Mills </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">10% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">81% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dwarikesh Sugar Industries </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">9% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">130% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Triveni Engineering and Industries </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">8% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">212% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dalmia Bharat Sugar &amp; Industries </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">5% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.8333325pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:2pt 2pt 2pt 2pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">167% </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody></table>Government’s measures to boost ethanol production In an effort to reduce import of petroleum products, the government has been encouraging farmers to produce ethanol that can be blended with petrol and used as a fuel in vehicles. Also, the centre has advised auto makers to manufacture flex fuel vehicles that are capable of running on both ethanol-based fuel and petrol. Maruti Suzuki, Toyota, Honda, BMW and Mercedes have been told to make vehicles that can run on ethanol based fuel, said Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari in an Agro-Vision event in Nagpur this week while encouraging farmers to grow more sugarcane plants. <div type="javascript" title="Custom" contenttype="Image"><cdata><![CDATA[ ]]></cdata></div>The move is in line with the government’s target to reduce the carbon emissions by one billion tonnes by 2030. Analysts say sugar industry has a long way to go Sugar industry in India is expected to grow by 6-7% in the years 2021-2022 due to growth in exports of sugar and ethanol, said Manoj Dalmia, founder and director, Proficient equities. “Exports taking place from India will rise as Brazil is facing weather changes impacting crops. India is to register exports of around 4-6 million tonnes for (sugar 2022). Government plans 20% ethanol blending by 2025 in petrol, currently it is 10%. This measure will reduce the debt burden on farmers as a result sugar stocks are to grow,” said Dalmia. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/six-reasons-why-indias-central-bank-believes-cryptocurrencies-threaten-financial-stability/articleshow/88588170.cms">Six reasons why India’s central bank believes cryptocurrencies threaten financial stability</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/rbl-banks-stock-slumped-nearly-10-even-as-rbi-approves-interim-head-for-the-bank/articleshow/88584214.cms">RBL Bank slides back to its lowest in a year despite a new chief and RBI's assurances</a>

Sugar companies witness a sweet rally on ethanol excitement that may continue in 2022 as well

<div class="image-container float_right" style="width:480px"><div class="image"><a href="http://pictures.reuters.com/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult_VPage&amp;VBID=2C0BXZ6NJ5GKL&amp;SMLS=1&amp;RW=1491&amp;RH=855#/SearchResult_VPage&amp;VBID=2C0BXZ6NJ5GKL&amp;SMLS=1&amp;RW=1491&amp;RH=855&amp;PN=1">Reuters/Karl Plume</a></div></div>Walls are generally bad. Just ask the Chinese, the East Germans, or Roger Waters. 
The U.S. is about to slam head-first into its own barrier: the renewable fuel "blend wall."
This is the limit on the amount of <keyword id="6533570" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ethanol">ethanol</keyword> — aka corn byproduct — refiners are capable of adding to consumer gasoline.
The reason why they aren't adding more: Americans aren't using as much gas as they did when the current renewable fuel standard was passed.
That was 2007 — the idea was to both curb fossil fuel use and reduce dependence on overseas oil. Congress said refiners must blend an ever-increasing amount of ethanol into their products, and must hit 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel by 2022 — regardless of how much fuel is actually in demand.
And since 2007, U.S. fuel use has plummeted. <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-26/epa-says-ethanol-bounty-may-push-refiners-over-blend-wall.html">According to Bloomberg's Mark Drajem</a>, average daily gasoline use in 2012 was 8.3 percent lower than in 2007.
In theory, refiners could get around the problem by using a higher concentration of ethanol.
But that's actually another constraint: refiners are basically confined to using a blend with very low ethanol concentration — E10 (which is 10% ethanol).
That's because there are lots of hurdles to using blends with the highest ethanol content. E85 can only be used in flex-fuel vehicles, and the infrastructure capable of transporting and storing even E15 remains limited. 
So what's the answer?
Refiners seeking to bypass the requirement are supposed to buy renewable identification numbers — RINs.
<a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/100866132">But as Reuters' Gerard Wynn writes</a>, demand — and prices — for RINs have been skyrocketing, suggesting we're careening into the wall. 
RIN prices surged $0.12 yesterday to reach a new all time high of $1.32. And those prices are going to be passed on to consumers. 
The ethanol industry <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-14/ethanol-rins-aren-t-raising-gasoline-prices-rfa-s-dinneen-says.html">has denied there's a correlation</a> between higher <keyword id="154077" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="gas-prices">gas prices</keyword> and increasing RIN rates. 
But that was in March, when prices were barely over a dollar. The EIA says there's some evidence RIN prices could already be driving diesel and jet fuel higher.
The <keyword id="52232" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="EPA">EPA</keyword> is expected to finalize its targets for ethanol consumption in 2013 within the next two weeks.
“It’s really not a pretty picture next year,” an East Coast ethanol blender told him.

How A 2007 Ethanol Law And A Decline In Driving Could Be Contributing To A Rise In Gas Prices

<ul><li>The Indian government has announced a 25% increase in the price of ethanol produced from B-heavy molasses of <keyword id="46885" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sugarcane">sugarcane</keyword>. </li><li>A sustainable increase in production of the alternative fuel could also serve to meet <keyword id="3658" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword>'s energy requirements.</li><li>Producing is ethanol is more profitable for the economy and there’s excess demand to be met. </li></ul>Sugar produce in India might see a decline with the government <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/sugar-output-likely-to-drop-if-mills-make-ethanol-directly-from-b-molasses-118091200107_1.html">announcing incentives </a>on the production of ethanol from B-heavy molasses. Historically, India has been the largest consumer of sugar in the world but the focus on meeting that demand has led to a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india-could-soon-become-the-worlds-largest-sugar-producer-but-heres-why-thats-a-problem/articleshow/65657844.cms">surplus in the market.</a> Not only is the demand for ethanol higher, but it is a more profitable option as well. The main boon of the policy lies in the fact that India is the fourth largest producer and consumer of energy. And, ethanol, serves as an alternative fuel. Nitin Gadkari, the Union Transport Minister, made a <a href="https://www.news18.com/news/auto/switching-to-ethanol-cng-will-reduce-petrol-diesel-prices-in-india-bjp-union-minister-nitin-gadkari-1874025.html" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">statement</a> saying that switching over the alternative fuels like ethanol could serve as a important catalyst in driving down the prices of petrol and diesel that currently rising at an increasing pace. The new policy could be a boon to stabilise sugar prices, increase the income of farms and reduce India's dependency on foreign crude oil, all in one sweep. What are B-heavy molasses? Molasses are basically any fluid substance resulting from refining sugar cane into sugar. So far, mills only derived ethanol from C-heavy molasses because without remuneration backed by policy, using the B-heavy molasses wouldn’t be profitable. But with this policy allowing for a 25% increase in the price of ethanol from B-heavy molasses from ₹47.5 per litre to ₹52.43, <keyword id="6374174" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sugar-mills">sugar mills</keyword> have a margin they can rely on. Demand-supply disparity According to the India Sugar Mills Association, India is set to produce 35.5 million tonnes of sugar between October 2018 and September 2019 but the demand is only at 25 million tonnes. Even historically, reports <a href="http://www.indiansugar.com/PDFS/Kingsman_2016-final.pdf">show</a> that India sugar consumption has remained stable at around 20 kilos per capita a year. So, a decline in sugar output through incentivising B-heavy molasses might not only be good for the economy but a more sustainable solution as well. There are three crucial outcomes tied in with each other. One, the current level of sugar output will decrease leading to an increase in price. That will take the burden off the government who’s currently set the MSP at ₹29/kg, which is above the global average hurting the product’s export competitiveness. Two, the farmers who are owed money will quickly be remunerated. Currently, the debt is expected to reach around ₹30 billion if the output isn’t curbed. And, three, the economy would benefit as a whole since ethanol is more profitable and there is excess demand is waiting to be addressed. It also serves as an alternative fuel that could potentially reduce India's dependence on crude oil. And, addressing the price disparity of sugar would increase the global demand for sugar, a market that's currently sluggish as is.

India's curbing its sugar surplus by incentivising ethanol production

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Biden will allow sales of E15 ethanol-blended <keyword id="11955852" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="gas" source="Orion">gas</keyword> this summer, the <keyword id="11896084" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="white-house" source="Orion">White House</keyword> said Tuesday.</li><li>It said the move is aimed at counter soaring fuel prices which followed <keyword id="11894337" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="russia" source="Orion">Russia</keyword>'s invasion of <keyword id="11985141" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ukraine" source="Orion">Ukraine</keyword>.</li></ul>President <keyword id="99719" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="joe-biden" source="Orion">Joe Biden</keyword> will allow E15 ethanol-blended gas to be sold throughout the US this summer, the White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/12/fact-sheet-using-homegrown-biofuels-to-address-putins-price-hike-at-the-pump-and-lower-costs-for-american-families/">said</a> Tuesday, as part of measures to tackle <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/uber-driver-working-less-due-to-rising-gas-prices-2022-3?r=US&amp;IR=T">soaring fuel prices</a> in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. E15 <keyword id="12360876" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="gasoline" source="Orion">gasoline</keyword>, which is gasoline blended with 15% <keyword id="12510895" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ethanol" source="Orion">ethanol</keyword>, is banned in most of the US during the summer because of air pollution concerns. But the White House said that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to issue a national emergency waiver which would allow E15 to be sold between June 1 and September 15.The White House said that E15 is on average $0.10 per gallon cheaper than other gas. Using more E15 would bring down prices and reduce dependency on foreign fuels, it said in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/12/fact-sheet-using-homegrown-biofuels-to-address-putins-price-hike-at-the-pump-and-lower-costs-for-american-families/">press release</a>.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-us-ban-russian-oil-natural-gas-coal-imports-report-2022-3?r=US&amp;IR=T">The US banned imports of oil and natural gas from Russia</a> on March 8, causing global oil and petroleum product prices to rocket.As of Tuesday, gasoline cost on average $4.098 per gallon in the US, according to the <a href="https://gasprices.aaa.com/">AAA</a>. Prices have retreated from a peak of $4.331 reached on March 11, but still remain considerably higher than this time last year."An emergency waiver can help increase fuel supplies, give consumers more choice to get lower prices, and provide savings to many families," the White House said, adding that the EPA would work with states to ensure there are no significant air quality impacts.But Lenny Rodriguez, an oil analyst at S&amp;P Global, <a href="https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/agriculture/041222-biden-to-announce-us-epa-emergency-waiver-allowing-summer-e15-fuel-sales">said</a> that the slightly lower <keyword id="11917806" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="energy" source="Orion">energy</keyword> content of E15 means that "motorists will see lower mileage per gallon than usual and might end up needing to fill up their tanks more frequently."The White House said that E15 is currently offered at 2,300 gas stations in the country, though S&amp;P Global noted that these are mostly located in the Midwest. E10 gasoline, which has a lower concentration of ethanol, is more widely available, and throughout the year, according to S&amp;P Global."We obviously expect an uptick in E15 sales this summer due to greater overall gasoline consumption, greater availability of E15, and E15 selling at a discount to E10 at the pump," Corey Lavinsky, global manager of biofuels analytics at S&amp;P Global Commodity Insights, said.But he noted that the additional ethanol volumes sold during the summer if the waiver is implemented "should be relatively small, roughly 25 million gallons."

Biden to allow E15 ethanol-blended gas to be sold throughout the US this summer to counter soaring fuel prices

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Trump slammed Ron DeSantis for previously moving to kill a federal mandate prized by ethanol producers.</li><li>Ethanol is a major industry in the politically important state. </li></ul>Former President Donald Trump on Friday slammed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over a past move to end a prized ethanol mandate, foreshadowing a likely primary clash to come in Iowa, the state that will kick off the entire process."Why on earth (farmer's love earth!) would the wonderful people of the GREAT State of Iowa vote for Ron DeSanctimonious when he voted and fought to KILL Ethanol (and will definitely do so if given the chance) ..." Trump wrote in part in an early morning post on his social media platform, Truth.DeSantis, Trump concluded, would "beg for mercy" in Iowa. The former president also touted his own policies, including his overhaul of the North American Free Trade Agreement known as the USMCA. Trump's screed came just before DeSantis made his post-midterm Iowa debut during a Friday afternoon event in Davenport, Iowa, an appearance to ostensibly promote his new bestselling book. In reality, the event and DeSantis' entire book tour provide him an ample opportunity to test out a campaign message before his widely expected announcement later this year. Gov. Kim Reynolds, who is not expected to endorse before the Iowa caucuses, introduced DeSantis. The former president was taking aim at a policy that then-Congressman DeSantis supported. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ron-desantis-2024-past-views-iowa-caucus-ethanol-rfs-2023-2">As Insider previously reported</a>, DeSantis, who was a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, supported legislation in 2017 that would have immediately ended the Renewable Fuel Standard or RFS. The standard requires specific percentages of renewable fuel to be blended into the nation's fuel supply.The ethanol industry closely protects the mandate since it effectively subsidizes the industry. Iowa is by far the largest producer of corn-based ethanol, which means that crossing the industry comes with immense political peril since the state is also home to the first-in-the-nation Republican caucuses.DeSantis did not discuss ethanol policy <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXLpT9y9MeE">during his Iowa event, </a>rather he received immense applause for recounting his actions during the pandemic. The governor also recounted his tussle with Disney over a parental rights in education law related to when it's appropriate to teach students about gender identity or sexual orientation.

Trump says DeSantis will 'beg for mercy' in Iowa after he once voted to kill a prized ethanol mandate

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">AP/Charlie RiedelIn this July 26, 2013, photo, erosion is seen in field of soybeans that was recently converted to row crops near Corydon, Iowa. The barn is also slated to be demolished to allow more acreage to be planted.</div></div></div>AP Investigation: Obama's green energy drive comes with an unadvertised environmental cost
CORYDON, Iowa (AP) - The hills of southern Iowa bear the scars of America's push for green energy: The brown gashes where rain has washed away the soil. The polluted streams that dump fertilizer into the water supply.
Even the cemetery that disappeared like an apparition into a cornfield.
It wasn't supposed to be this way.
With the Iowa political caucuses on the horizon in 2007, presidential candidate Barack Obama made homegrown corn a centerpiece of his plan to slow global warming. When President George W. Bush signed a law that year requiring oil companies to add billions of gallons of <keyword id="6533570" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ethanol">ethanol</keyword> to their gasoline each year, Bush predicted it would make the country "stronger, cleaner and more secure."
But the ethanol era has proven far more damaging to the environment than politicians promised and much worse than the government admits today.
As farmers rushed to find new places to plant corn, they wiped out millions of acres of conservation land, destroyed habitat and contaminated water supplies, an Associated Press investigation found.
Five million acres of land set aside for conservation - more than Yellowstone, Everglades and Yosemite National Parks combined - have been converted on Obama's watch.
Landowners filled in wetlands. They plowed into pristine prairies, releasing carbon dioxide that had been locked in the soil.
Sprayers pumped out billions of pounds of fertilizer, some of which seeped into drinking water, polluted rivers and worsened the huge dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico where marine life can't survive.
In Wisconsin, for instance, farmers planted 700,000 more acres of corn last year than they did the year before the ethanol mandate was passed. Nearly 250,000 acres of conservation land were lost.
The consequences are so severe that environmentalists and many scientists have now rejected corn-based ethanol as bad environmental policy. But the Obama administration stands by it, highlighting its benefits to the farming industry rather than any negative consequences.
All energy comes at a cost. The environmental consequences of drilling for oil and natural gas are well documented and severe. But in the president's push to reduce greenhouse gases and curtail global warming, his administration has allowed so-called green energy to do not-so-green things.
In some cases, such as the decision to allow wind farms that sometimes kill eagles, the administration accepts environmental costs because they pale in comparison to the havoc global warming could ultimately cause.
In the case of ethanol, the administration believes it must encourage the development of next-generation biofuels that will someday be cleaner and greener than today's.
"That is what you give up if you don't recognize that renewable fuels have some place here," EPA administrator Gina McCarthy said. "All renewable fuels are not corn ethanol."
But next-generation biofuels haven't been living up to expectations. And the government's predictions on ethanol have proven so inaccurate that independent scientists question whether it will ever achieve its central environmental goal: reducing greenhouse gases.
That makes the hidden costs even more significant.
"They're raping the land," said Bill Alley, a Democratic member of the board of supervisors in Wayne County, Iowa, which now bears little resemblance to the rolling cow pastures shown in postcards sold at a Corydon town pharmacy.
The numbers behind the ethanol mandate have become so unworkable that, for the first time, the EPA is soon expected to reduce the amount of ethanol required to be added to the gasoline supply. An unusual coalition of big oil companies, environmental groups and food companies is pushing the government to go even further and reconsider the entire ethanol program.
But the Obama administration stands by the mandate and rarely acknowledges that green energy requires any trade-offs.
"There is no question air quality, water quality is benefiting from this industry," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told ethanol lobbyists recently.
But the administration has never conducted studies to determine whether that's true.
Fertilizer, for instance, can make drinking water toxic. Children are especially susceptible to nitrate poisoning, which causes "blue baby" syndrome and can be deadly.
Between 2005 and 2010, corn farmers increased their use of nitrogen fertilizer by more than a billion pounds. More recent data isn't available from the Agriculture Department, but conservative projections suggest another billion-pound increase since then.
In the Midwest, where corn is the dominant crop, some are sounding alarms.
The Des Moines Water Works has faced high nitrate levels for many years in the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers, which supply drinking water to 500,000 people. Typically, when pollution is too high in one river, workers draw from the other.
"This year, unfortunately the nitrate levels in both rivers were so high that it created an impossibility for us," said Bill Stowe, the utility's general manager.
For three months this summer, huge purifiers churned around the clock to meet demand for safe, clean water.
Obama's support for ethanol dates to his time as a senator form Illinois, the nation's second-largest corn producer.
"If we're going to get serious about investing in our energy future, we must give our family farmers and local ethanol producers a fair shot at success," Obama said in 2007.
From the beginning of his presidential administration, however, Obama's environmental team saw corn ethanol as a dubious policy. Corn demands fertilizer, which is made using natural gas. What's worse, ethanol factories typically burn coal or gas, both of which release carbon dioxide.
Then there's the land conversion, the most controversial and difficult-to-predict outcome.
Digging up grassland releases greenhouse gases, so environmentalists are skeptical of anything that encourages planting more corn.
"I don't remember anybody having great passion for this," said Bob Sussman, who served on Obama's transition team and recently retired as the Environmental Protection Agency's senior policy counsel. "I don't have a lot of personal enthusiasm for the program."
There was plenty enthusiasm at the White House and at the Department of Agriculture, where officials argued to the EPA that ethanol was cleaner than it thought. The EPA ultimately agreed.
The policy hinged on assumptions that corn prices would not go too high and farms would get more efficient. That way, there wouldn't be much incentive to plow untouched areas and destroy conservation land.
But corn prices climbed to more than $7 a bushel, about twice the administration's long-term prediction. Suddenly, setting aside land for conservation was bad economics for many farmers.
"I'm coming to the point where financially, it's not feasible," said Leroy Perkins, a farmer in Wayne County who set aside 91 acres years ago and let it grow into high grass.
Losing millions of conservation acres was bad. Plowing over untouched prairies was worse.
Using satellite data - the best tool available - The Associated Press identified at least 1.2 million acres of virgin land in Nebraska and the Dakotas that have been converted to corn and soybean fields since 2006.
"The last five years, we've become financially solvent," said Robert Malsam, a farmer in Edmunds County, S.D., who like others in the Dakotas has plowed wild grassland to expand his corn crop.
The government could change the mandate or demand more safeguards. But that would pick a fight with agricultural lobbyists and would put the administration on the side of oil companies, which despise the ethanol requirement.
Bob Dinneen, president of the Renewable Fuels Association, the ethanol lobbying group, said there's no reason to change anything. Ethanol is still cleaner than oil, he said.
These days, when administration officials discuss ethanol, they often frame it as an economic program for rural America, not an environmental policy.
When Obama gave a major speech in June on reducing greenhouse gas, biofuels received only a passing reference.
With the government's predictions so far off from reality, scientists say it's hard to argue for ethanol as global warming policy.
"I'd have to think really hard to come up with a scenario where it's a net positive," said Silvia Secchi, a Southern Illinois University agriculture economist.
She paused, then added: "I'm stumped."
___
Associated Press writers Jack Gillum in Washington and Chet Brokaw in Roscoe, S.D., contributed to this report.
<div class="nc_footer">
Copyright (2013) Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
</div>

The Secret, Dirty Cost Of Obama's Green Power Push 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Ron DeSantis supported killing a federal mandate that is prized by the ethanol industry.</li><li>DeSantis' past votes are being scrutinized ahead of an expected presidential campaign.</li></ul>Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' potential bid to dethrone former President Donald Trump could hit a critical snag in Iowa, home to the first-in-the-nation caucuses. DeSantis, like many other House conservatives, was previously opposed to a federal mandate that has helped spur domestic ethanol production. As a Floridian, he faced little to no cost for such a view. As a now likely future presidential candidate, he will have some explaining to do.<h2>DeSantis voting record is already a punching bag </h2>DeSantis' potential rivals have already <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ron-desantis-voting-record-vulnerabilities-congress-2024-trump-biden-2023-2">begun tearing into his record</a>. He hasn't even announced a campaign yet.Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ron-desantis-voting-record-vulnerabilities-congress-2024-trump-biden-2023-2">have made it clear</a> that they'll go after his votes to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-leans-into-attacking-gop-on-medicare-and-social-security-pre-2024-2023-2">fundamentally change Medicare and Social Security</a>. Former UN Ambassador Nikki Hayley, the only other major GOP candidate at the moment,<a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/02/17/washington-congress-live-news-updates/11273697002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> blasted DeSantis</a> for not going far enough with a parental education rights bill that critics tagged as "Don't say gay." While New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/20/us/politics/chris-sununu-republican-president-2024.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">went after the Floridian</a> for targeting private businesses, a likely nod to Florida's efforts to punish Disney after the company criticized the parental rights bill.But primaries are not won in debates; they're won in states. One of those states is Iowa, and one bill in particular could jeopardize his fate there. Less than a year before he announced his gubernatorial run, the then-Florida congressman <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1314/text?s=1&amp;r=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">co-sponsored legislation in 2017</a> that would have immediately ended the Renewable Fuel Standard, a mandate that requires renewable fuel to be blended into the nation's fuel supply. The federal mandate applies to multiple categories of biofuels, but it's main requirements are met by corn starch ethanol. Iowa produces more corn than any other state, and a majority of that crop is processed into ethanol along with the byproducts such as livestock feed."If you come to Iowa, you're going to talk about agriculture," Monte Shaw, the executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, told Insider. "Over 60% of Iowa's corn crop, which is, of course the largest in the country, goes into an ethanol plant."<div type="image" title="A corn field by an ethanol plant in Nevada, Iowa" height="1249" width="2500" msid="98321148" hostid="261" sizebytes="144088"></div>The bill, written by then-Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, would have immediately ended the mandate. The mandate is <a href="https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2021/7/feinstein-toomey-menendez-collins-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-repeal-ethanol-mandate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">not without its detractors</a>. Some conservatives have long loathed it since it's a government mandate on private industry, while <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2023/01/new-epa-biofuel-standards-ethanol-environmentalists-unhappy/#:~:text=Under%20the%20RFS%2C%20renewable%20fuels,than%20the%20energy%20they%20replace." target="_blank" rel="noopener">some environmentalists question</a> if boosting ethanol is the most environmentally sound policy."He was a congressman from Florida, probably hadn't been to Iowa, probably hadn't toured an ethanol plant, probably hadn't talked to a whole lot of corn growers, quite frankly," Shaw said. "Do I like the fact that this is track record? No. I don't want anyone to dislike ethanol. Is that a deal-breaker? Hell no."Iowa looms large over the modern presidential primary and caucus calendar. At the very least, any candidate who wants to topple Trump will need to finish near the top in the state.<h2>DeSantis won't be alone in facing questions</h2>Trump's own administration was hammered over its handling of the renewable fuel standard. Both of Iowa's Republican senators, Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst, repeatedly sought to play the then-president against his EPA administrators. The Environmental Protection Agency is <a href="https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R43325" target="_blank" rel="noopener">responsible for setting standard.</a> The agency also fields requests from smaller oil refiners, which are allowed to ask for waivers if they can prove that the mandate is financially harmful. "Once again, EPA is playing games and not helping President Trump with farmers. An agreement was reached on September 12 in an Oval Office meeting between several Midwest leaders, President Trump and other members of his Administration," <a href="https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-ernst-statements-epa-s-2020-rfs-rule" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Grassley and Ernst said in a 2019 statement.</a> "This does not reflect what we agreed to in that meeting."Shaw deemed Trump a "mixed bag." He praised the Trump administration for moving to allow a higher-blend of ethanol to be sold at gas stations year-round. Like Iowa's senators, he was also deeply frustrated by how Trump's EPA enforced the renewable fuel standard.Then again, Donald Trump did win the 2016 nomination without Iowa.Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is weighing a 2024 campaign, may be in more hot water among Iowans.Pompeo took a strong position against a key tax credit for wind energy during his time in Congress. Pompeo delighted in leading the <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2013/04/stabenow-pompeo-wind-energy-tax-credit-090559" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struggle</a> against <a href="https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2012/nov/13/governors-call-for-renewing-wind-energy-tax-credit/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Wind Production Tax Credit,</a> a policy so close to Grassley that the Iowa senator is often called the "father" of it. Iowa is also the<a href="https://www.eia.gov/state/?sid=IA" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> nation's second-largest producer of wind energy.</a> The then-Kansas lawmaker took a strong philosophical stance against government support of specific renewable sources. <h2>No state produces ethanol — or headaches for the GOP — like Iowa does</h2>Iowa is the <a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=53539#:~:text=As%20of%20January%201%2C%202022,%2Fy)%20from%20275%20facilities." target="_blank" rel="noopener">nation's largest ethanol producer.</a> Forty-one plants are based in the state, stretching all the way from Council Bluffs and the Nebraska border to the West to Muscatine and the Illinois border to the East. Last year, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association said that the state <a href="https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/money/business/2023/01/10/amid-growing-demand-ethanol-production-in-iowa-sets-recod-group-says/69793252007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">set another record</a> as it produced 4.5 billion barrels of ethanol. In 2021, the last year for which there is full data, the US in total produced 15 billion barrels.The marriage between a once-nascent industry and Iowa's raw political power is so well known that The West Wing <a href="https://westwing.fandom.com/wiki/King_Corn" target="_blank" rel="noopener">devoted a whole episode</a> to the question of whether aspiring presidents would shuck aside their past views for a chance to win.Shaw said that there are many "myths" about the standard and the caucuses, rejecting that there are any sort of "kiss the ring" moments. Instead, he said his organization uses the caucuses as a tool to educate candidates."Believe me, I wish it was that easy, right?" he said. "It's not what it's like at all. The ethanol industry isn't here because of the Iowa caucuses, we're here because we're the world's cheapest source of fuel octane."McCain spent years ripping federal support of ethanol, including a now-expired subsidy before <a href="https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/11/13/8393132/index.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">slightly softening his stance.</a> As McCain would often say in the state, "I do have a glass of ethanol every morning with Chuck Grassley." But the era of "King Corn" may be ending. <div type="image" title="Ted Cruz speaks to supporters after winning the 2016 Iowa Republican caucuses" height="1249" width="2500" msid="98321149" hostid="261" sizebytes="123094"></div>Texas Sen. Ted Cruz <a href="https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2016/01/19/branstad-says-he-wants-cruz-defeated-iowa/79003590/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was hammered for months </a>on the campaign trail for wanting to phase out the Renewable Fuel Standard. <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2016/01/ted-cruz-ethanol-217417" target="_blank" rel="noopener">He appeared to soften his position</a>, though his campaign pushed back on the idea he was changing his views. Ultimately, he emerged victorious, the only Republican not named Donald Trump to win one of the four early states in 2016. He also did so without ever explicitly promising the entirety of what the biofuels industry would want.Iowa is all about the expectations game. Media attention on the top finishers is only likely to increase amid the prospect that it will be Trump's first time on a ballot since losing the 2020 election. Delegate allocation rules mean that no candidate is anywhere close to the nomination even if they emerge victorious, but a poor finish could doom a campaign. For now, whether DeSantis has changed his mind since his time in Congress remains unclear. Representatives for the governor did not respond to Insider's request for comment.

Ron DeSantis' past views could come back to bite him in Iowa, a critical state for any GOP challenger to Trump

<ul><li><keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> is set to produce 35.5 million tonnes of <keyword id="31653" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sugar">sugar</keyword> between October 2018 and September 2019, a 10% jump from the previous year. </li><li>As a result, India will unseat <keyword id="6355226" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="brazil">Brazil</keyword> as the world’s largest producer of sugar. </li><li>However, this is largely because Brazil is converting its surplus <keyword id="46885" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sugarcane">sugarcane</keyword> produce to ethanol, which is in higher demand than sugar and more profitable. </li></ul>India, which is the world’s largest consumer of sugar, is set to produce a record yield of sugarcane in the current financial year. This is largely because sugarcane farmers are assured of a government-mandated fair price from <keyword id="6374174" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sugar-mills">sugar mills</keyword> that exceeds their costs by a significant margin. According to data from the Indian Sugar Mills Association, the country’s sugarcane farmers will produce 35.5 million tonnes of sugar between October 2018, when the crop season starts, and September 2019. This is a significant jump over the 32.2 million tonnes it will have produced by the end of 2017-18. In doing so, India will unseat Brazil as the world’s largest producer of sugar. However, this isn’t because Brazil is producing less sugarcane or is less efficient. It’s simply because Brazil is doing a better job at converting its surplus sugarcane stocks to ethanol, which is produced through the fermentation of sugarcane. Brazil’s sugar output for 2018-19 is expected to fall by 22% to 30 million tonnes as it diverts inputs towards ethanol production, which is in higher demand and more profitable. Given the depressed prices of sugar in global market, Brazilian producers found that it made more sense to prioritise ethanol, which is an alternative fuel. When “too much” becomes a bad thing The robust levels of sugar production in India have contributed to a decline in market prices to the point at which sugar is being sold at below its production cost and mills are recording huge losses, a result of which is that farmers <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/sugarcane-arrears-to-farmers-down-to-rs-16600-crore-government/articleshow/65214878.cms">aren’t getting paid</a>. This has forced the government to set a minimum price of ₹29/kg for sugar, which is above global prices, hence hurting the product’s global competitiveness. In addition, India only consumes 25 million tonnes of sugar, which means that it will likely have 10 million tonnes of surplus production in 2018-19. However, the country does not have the distillery capacity to convert it’s excess sugarcane into ethanol. To make matters worse, the current minimum prices of ethanol in India do not make its production financially viable. So, in essence, India has no choice but to ship the excess stocks. However, the level of demand for India’s low-quality white sugar isn’t sufficient. Besides, even if all the surplus stocks are exported, not only will this contribute to a global gut in sugar, but it will also serve to depress prices further. Taking note of this, the Modi administration approved a <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/no-mill-can-sell-sugar-below-rs-29/kg-government-order/articleshow/64498032.cms">₹44.4 billion</a> financing package to improve domestic ethanol production capacity, but it will take some time for the programme to start showing results. Concurrently, in April 2018, the government of Maharashtra, the state that produces the second-largest amount of sugar in India, was said to be planning <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/maharashtra-government-plans-subsidy-for-mills-to-export-sugar-5144453/">an export subsidy scheme</a> for sugar producers. The Indian government is also trying to make a push for <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/foreign-trade/india-itches-for-sugar-export-to-china/articleshow/64413898.cms">sugar exports to China</a>.

India could soon become the world’s largest sugar producer but here’s why that’s a problem

New Delhi: Ethanol plants manufacturer Regreen-Excel <keyword id="23123526" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="epc-india-ltd" source="keywords">EPC India Ltd</keyword> has filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator <keyword id="35210" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="SEBI" source="Orion">Sebi</keyword> to raise funds through an initial public offering (IPO). The company's initial share-sale comprises a fresh issue of equity shares worth Rs 350 crore and an offer-for-sale (<keyword id="19951016" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ofs" source="keywords">OFS</keyword>) of 1.14 crore equity shares by promoters, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP). The company proposes to utilize the net proceeds from fresh issue for payment of debt, funding margin money requirements for the purpose of availing bank guarantees; and for general corporate purposes. Regreen-Excel EPCR is a technology-driven EPC company, engaged in designing, manufacturing and supplying ethanol plants. Over the years, the company has built end-to-end capabilities in setting up ethanol plants, across feedstocks such as molasses/ sugarcane syrup, grains or a combination thereof, which it to provide concept to commissioning solutions to their customers. Since the company's inception to July 15, 2024, it has executed 113 projects across various feedstocks, which consist of 53 molasses-based projects, 57 grains-based projects and three <keyword id="23123527" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="multi-feedstock" source="keywords">Multi Feedstock</keyword> projects. As of July 15, 2024, the company had an order book of 64 ongoing projects worth Rs 3,452 crore, which aggregate to over 10,000 kilo litres per day (<keyword id="23123525" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="klpd" source="keywords">KLPD</keyword>) of ethanol capacity. IIFL Securities and ICICI Securities are the book-running lead managers to the issue.

Regreen-Excel files IPO papers with Sebi, aims to raise Rs 350 crore

<ul><li>At the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Committee on Agriculture meeting later this month, <keyword id="6355478" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="australia">Australia</keyword> is all set to raise the issue of India’s <keyword id="31653" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sugar">sugar</keyword> production subsidies. </li><li>India’s sugarcane farmers are expected to produce 35.5 million tonnes of sugar between October 2018 and September 2019. This is well over domestic demand, and hence as India exports the surplus stocks, global prices will decline. </li><li>India has tried to curb the problem of overproduction by incentivising the production of ethanol, but the initiative is still in the early stages. </li></ul>As the US clashes with India over the latter’s <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/america-doesnt-like-indias-farmer-subsidies-and-thats-unlikely-to-change-anytime-soon/articleshow/64123715.cms">agricultural subsidies</a>, India is all set to be hit with a fresh challenge over its subsidies to local sugar producers — this time from Australia. At the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Committee on Agriculture meeting later this month, Australia is all set to raise the issue of India’s sugar production subsidies, according <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2018-11-16/india-sugar-subsidies-priority-for-industry/10176976">to ABC News</a>, complaining that these distort the global market for sugar by lowering prices and increasing supply significantly. To this effect, it has issued a counter-notification against India -- the first step required to compel a WTO member to cut subsidies, wherein the complainant explains the nature of the subsidy and subsequent market distortion. India’s astonishing rate of sugar production is well-documented. Given that they are assured of a government-set fixed price from sugar mills that helps them exceed their costs, India’s sugarcane farmers are expected to produce <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india-could-soon-become-the-worlds-largest-sugar-producer-but-heres-why-thats-a-problem/articleshow/65657844.cms">35.5 million tonnes </a>of sugar between October 2018 and September 2019, according to the <keyword id="124503" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Sugar-Mills-Association">Indian Sugar Mills Association</keyword>. As a result, India will overtake <keyword id="6355226" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="brazil">Brazil</keyword> as the world’s largest sugar producer. However, this isn’t something to be celebrated. India needs to do a better job at converting excess stocks of sugarcane to ethanol. Otherwise, it risks flooding the global market with excess sugar, since annual domestic demand is only about 25 million tonnes, depressing prices even further. That is largely where Australia’s complaints emanate from. The low global prices of sugar have hurt its sugarcane farmers falling well below their costs of production. In addition, more sugarcane importers are expected to choose India’s sugarcane over other countries like Australia and Brazil because of the cheaper prices. Meanwhile, India’s sugarcane mills are also struggling with low sugar prices, which has resulted in a huge build-up of <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/sugarcane-arrears-to-farmers-down-to-rs-16600-crore-government/articleshow/65214878.cms">arrears to </a>sugarcane farmers. That has led to a <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Industry/tlKss2fM2BcaGMrIyHR4ZJ/Government-approves-Rs8500-crore-sugar-bailout-package.html">bailout package</a> for the sector from the Indian government, as well as the scrapping of export duties and<a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/government-doubles-import-duty-on-sugar-to-100-hikes-chana-to-40/articleshow/62809086.cms"> levying of import duties </a>to keep domestic produce competitive. For its part, India has tried to curb the problem of overproduction by incentivising ethanol production, but it will be a while before the initiative takes effect. In September, it increased the price of ethanol produced from B-heavy molasses of sugarcane <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-curbing-its-sugar-surplus-by-incentivising-ethanol-production/articleshow/65807284.cms">by 25%</a> in order to make its production financially viable. As part of a financial rescue plan in June, the country also offered a loan package worth ₹44.4 billion to producers to undertake the production of ethanol. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india-could-soon-become-the-worlds-largest-sugar-producer-but-heres-why-thats-a-problem/articleshow/65657844.cms">India could soon become the world’s largest sugar producer but here’s why that’s a problem</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indias-curbing-its-sugar-surplus-by-incentivising-ethanol-production/articleshow/65807284.cms">India is curbing its sugar surplus by incentivising ethanol production</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/america-doesnt-like-indias-farmer-subsidies-and-thats-unlikely-to-change-anytime-soon/articleshow/64123715.cms">America doesn’t like India’s farmer subsidies and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon</a>

You Searched For "ethanol" and got 11 results

Gulf Petrochem investing Rs 1,000-crore to set up ethanol plant in India

BI India Bureau

Sugar companies witness a sweet rally on ethanol excitement that may continue in 2022 as well

Bhakti Makwana

How A 2007 Ethanol Law And A Decline In Driving Could Be Contributing To A Rise In Gas Prices

Rob Wile

India's curbing its sugar surplus by incentivising ethanol production

Prabhjote Gill

Biden to allow E15 ethanol-blended gas to be sold throughout the US this summer to counter soaring fuel prices

Grace Dean

Trump says DeSantis will 'beg for mercy' in Iowa after he once voted to kill a prized ethanol mandate

Brent D. Griffiths

The Secret, Dirty Cost Of Obama's Green Power Push

Dina Cappielo, Associated Pre…

Ron DeSantis' past views could come back to bite him in Iowa, a critical state for any GOP challenger to Trump

Brent D. Griffiths

India could soon become the world’s largest sugar producer but here’s why that’s a problem

Dilsher Dhillon

Regreen-Excel files IPO papers with Sebi, aims to raise Rs 350 crore

PTI

India is all set to be challenged by Australia at the WTO over its support to sugarcane farmers

Dilsher Dhillon

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides