Hardeep Singh Puri dismisses claims of biofuels damaging engines

With all of the 90,000-plus petrol pumps across the country selling only E20 petrol, some motorists complained about the impact on older vehicles.

Dismissing claims of biofuels damaging automobile engines, Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said that petrol blended with 20 percent ethanol is environmentally safe to use.

Petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol extracted from sugarcane or foodgrains, is safe to use, he said at an event here.

The percentage of ethanol blended in petrol in 2014 was 1.4 per cent which has now reached 20 per cent. "And I want to put a full stop there. We will now assess where we have to go. All the stories you hear that we are now going to do another leapfrog, etc, we haven't come to that conclusion," he said.

With all of the 90,000-plus petrol pumps across the country selling only E20 petrol (80 per cent petrol and 20 per cent ethanol), some motorists complained about the impact on older vehicles. Carmakers added to the confusion by initially saying E20 fuel had not been tested for compatibility with older vehicles, but later backtracked to say they were safe to use.

Puri and his ministry have repeatedly dismissed fears around the use of E20 as unfounded but said older vehicles may need to replace some rubber parts and gaskets which is a "simple process".

For a country that is 88 percent dependent on imports to meet its oil needs, biofuels and cleaner energy are imperative of the time, he said.

Responding to social media chatter about the impact of 20 per cent ethanol-blended petrol on vehicles, Puri's ministry had last month stated that concerns over a drastic drop in fuel efficiency are misplaced, adding that the fuel in fact offers improved acceleration.

Puri also said that India is confident of maintaining energy security as more energy is entering global markets from countries in the Western Hemisphere.