Bathinda: Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.’s (HPCL) second-generation (2G) ethanol bio-refinery in Punjab’s Bathinda district is expected to become operational by October after a delay of nearly two years, offering a major boost to efforts to curb paddy stubble burning while producing ethanol from agricultural waste.
Officials said around 97% of the construction work has been completed, with the remaining work expected to finish before the new paddy procurement season begins, Hindustan Times reported.
The ₹1,400-crore bio-refinery, located at Nasibpura village near Bathinda, is India’s first commercial-scale project designed to convert paddy straw into ethanol for blending with petrol under the Centre’s ethanol blending programme.
Bathinda Deputy Commissioner Rajesh Dhiman said the plant has been included in the district’s crop residue management plan for the current kharif season after project authorities committed to procuring paddy straw from farmers.
According to the district administration, the refinery plans to procure around 50,000 metric tonnes of paddy biomass during this year’s harvest season. The administration has also helped the project secure land for biomass storage and ensured adequate water supply.
The plant was originally scheduled to begin operations in 2024 but was delayed due to civil construction and technical issues.
Despite not being operational, the refinery has already been procuring crop residue. Officials said it collected around 1.25 lakh tonnes of paddy straw during the 2023 and 2024 kharif seasons in preparation for commissioning.
Once fully operational, the refinery will have a production capacity of 100 kilolitres of second-generation ethanol per day. To operate at full capacity, it will require about 570 metric tonnes of paddy straw daily, or nearly 2 lakh tonnes annually.
Punjab continues to grapple with large-scale paddy stubble burning every October and November, particularly after the harvest of non-basmati rice, contributing significantly to air pollution across northern India.
The HPCL project is expected to support ex-situ crop residue management by purchasing paddy straw from farmers and converting it into ethanol instead of allowing it to be burned in fields.
Officials said the district administration has provided 51 acres of panchayat land for biomass storage, while HPCL has acquired additional private land to support the project. Storage facilities have been created in Nasibpura, Kot Bhaktu and Kot Shamir villages.
Project officials said the refinery could become a model for converting agricultural waste into renewable fuel and, if successful, may encourage similar projects in other states to strengthen India’s biofuel programme while reducing crop residue burning.
