On Monday, Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari announced that many Indian companies are establishing plants to manufacture vehicles that run entirely on ethanol, including cars and two-wheelers.
Gadkari arrived at Parliament in a Toyota vehicle designed to run on ethanol and spoke to the media about it. He stated, “This is the world’s first vehicle with a flex engine that meets Euro 6 emission standards and achieves net zero emissions. It operates on ethanol derived from sugarcane juice, molasses, and corn.”
Toyota recently revealed plans to build a Rs 20,000 crore plant in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, to produce flex-fuel cars. Gadkari mentioned that Tata and Suzuki are also working on developing cars that run on 100 percent ethanol or flex engines.
In the two-wheeler segment, companies like Bajaj, TVS, and Hero are working on producing flex-engine motorcycles and scooters.
“Other manufacturers are also developing flex engines. Similar to petrol stations, ethanol pumps will soon be available for farmers. Our current import bill stands at Rs 16 lakh crore. Vehicles using ethanol will help reduce pollution, cut costs, and benefit farmers. This vehicle runs on 100 percent ethanol,” said Gadkari.
Earlier in August 2023, Gadkari unveiled a prototype of a 100 percent ethanol-run Bharat Stage (BS)-VI-compliant electrified flex-fuel car developed by Toyota Kirloskar Motors. Toyota has now announced plans to mass-produce these vehicles at their new Aurangabad plant.
The prototype unveiled in August was a Toyota Innova HyCross that operates on 100 percent ethanol (E100). It can travel 40 percent of its distance on ethanol and the remaining 60 percent on electric power, with the petrol engine turned off.
While flex-fuel vehicles have been available internationally, including Toyota’s flex-fuel Corolla launched in 2022, India is now prepared to produce flex-fuel vehicles that comply with BS-VI emission standards.
Gadkari emphasized, “The ethanol industry will be a significant boon for farmers, increasing ethanol demand and transforming India’s agricultural sector.”
He added, “Flex cars will greatly benefit farmers. Ethanol is domestic, and farmers will gain all its advantages. Just as there are petrol pumps, there will soon be ethanol pumps.”
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