Won't be feasible to offer pure petrol, lower blends as options to E20: Govt

NEW DELHI: Govt Friday ruled out offering pure petrol, lower ethanol-petrol blends as options to E20 saying it won't be feasible, amid a debate and demand that people should have choice for 100% petrol and E10 as well.

It also said E20 offers a higher-octane rating, superior anti-knock characteristics, faster combustion, better pickup, smoother acceleration and cleaner engine operation.In an official release, petroleum ministry said maintaining parallel nationwide supply chains would increase logistics costs and complicate distribution across more than one lakh retail outlets as it won't be feasible for petrol pumps to offer multiple fuel grades such as pure petrol, E10 and E20."Once a superior fuel has been scientifically validated, extensively tested and accepted by the automotive industry, the objective should be to move forward with confidence not to retreat to an inferior standard," the petroleum ministry said.It said govt had held several rounds of consultations with automobile manufacturers, technical experts, testing agencies and other stakeholders before rolling out E20 fuel. "Had automobile manufacturers not been fully satisfied with the results, they would never have stood behind the product or honoured vehicle warranties," the ministry saidIndia achieved 20% ethanol blending in petrol in April 2025 and at present, E20 fuel is the standard petrol variant across the country.

Govt also rejected the idea of reverting to E10 fuel, saying dedicated ethanol plants, distilleries, storage facilities and logistics networks have been created to meet India's blending targets, backed by bank loans of nearly Rs 1 lakh crore."What happens to the surplus production capacity? What happens to thousands of crores invested by farmers, cooperatives, entrepreneurs, financial institutions and public sector companies in good faith based on a national policy? Public policy must balance consumer interest with energy security, environmental sustainability, farmer welfare and prudent use of national resources," the ministry said.On why blended fuel was not cheaper, the ministry said ethanol was being procured around Rs 72 per litre - a remunerative price to support farmers - making E20 costlier to produce than pure petrol. It added that E20-blended petrol would become cheaper than regular fuel if crude prices rose to $120-130 a barrel, the levels seen during the peak of the West Asia conflict.The ministry also mentioned that India's largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki, serviced 1.5 crore "older and non-E20-certified vehicles" in 2025-26 and found no E20-linked corrosion, abnormal wear or component-life damage.

Two-wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp also reported similar field experience, it said."If E20 were genuinely damaging rubber components, fuel lines or engines, we would have witnessed lakhs of warranty claims, widespread component failures and an avalanche of complaints across the country," govt said.It also dismissed concerns over vehicles labelled "E10 compatible", saying they do not become unsafe simply because fuel standards evolve later after extensive scientific testing, engineering validation and regulatory approval.