Government readies diesel biofuel push; Tata Motors to begin isobutanol-blend trials next quarter
By Swaraj Baggonkar
After achieving its target of 20 percent ethanol blending in petrol, the government is preparing to extend its biofuel programme to diesel through isobutanol blending later this year.
The move could have far-reaching implications for India’s commercial vehicle industry, which remains heavily dependent on diesel despite growing adoption of alternative fuels.
“We will start trial with 2 percent blending of isobutanol; it is being done on a pilot basis. We are working with HPCL to give us the blended fuel so that we can start trials,” Tata Motors managing director and CEO Girish Wagh said on June 25 during a press briefing. The country’s largest commercial vehicle maker expects pilot trials to begin in the next quarter.
Isobutanol is an advanced biofuel alcohol that can be blended with diesel to lower emissions, improve combustion and reduce dependence on fossil fuels without requiring significant engine modifications.
The government’s move comes after the successful rollout of E20 petrol blending and is aimed at reducing India’s dependence on imported crude oil.
In May, road transport and highways secretary V Umashankar said a mandate for isobutanol blending in diesel “will start coming in somewhere later this year”. Diesel consumption in India is nearly double that of petrol, making any blending programme in diesel potentially more impactful for the country’s energy security objectives, he said.
Wagh said Tata Motors does not expect the initial blending ratio to affect vehicle performance materially. “Because the calorific value of isobutanol is lower than diesel, there would be some impact but 2 percent is hardly anything to have an impact,” he said.
Globally, isobutanol has already found application as a transport fuel.
The United States has used isobutanol blends in gasoline, while research and pilot projects involving diesel blends have been undertaken in several markets. However, there is no large-scale mandatory commercial blending programme for isobutanol in diesel in Europe or China.
The development assumes significance for the commercial vehicle sector, where diesel continues to dominate. While electric mobility and natural gas-powered vehicles have gained traction in recent years, medium and heavy-duty trucks operating on long-haul routes remain overwhelmingly diesel-powered.
Manufacturers, including Tata Motors, have focused electrification efforts on buses and smaller cargo vehicles, while diesel remains the preferred fuel for higher payload applications.
According to data from the Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell (PPAC), India consumed about 91.4 million tonnes of diesel in FY25, making it the country’s most consumed petroleum product. Industry executives say even a modest blending mandate could create substantial demand for biofuels while helping lower the carbon footprint of the transport sector.
This article has been republished from The Moneycontrol.com