MOSCOW (MRC) -- India's government will bring forward to 2023 from 2025 the possibility of fuel companies selling gasoline containing up to 20% of ethanol (E20), reported Reuters with reference to brokers and a publication in the country's official gazette.
It is the second time India's government anticipates sales of the E20 fuel, which originally would happen only in 2030, as the country seeks to cut its oil import bill and reduce carbon dioxide pollution in cities.
"The central government hereby directs that the oil companies shall sell ethanol blended petrol with percentage of ethanol up to 20% as per the Bureau of Indian Standards specifications, in the whole of the states and union territories," the publication said.
The move from India towards higher production and use of ethanol is expected to cut the country's exportable surplus of sugar, potentially leading to higher international prices for the sweetener. Most of the additional ethanol production in the country will come from sugar cane processing, so less cane will likely be used to make sugar.
Wednesday's publication comes after changes earlier last week by the government on rules for companies to set up standalone ethanol production units, aiming to facilitate those projects.
As MRC informed previously, Indian state refiners’ daily gasoline and gasoil sales declined by about a fifth in May from a month earlier as lockdowns to curb the second deadly wave of COVID-19 hit industrial activities and consumption. Daily gasoline sales in May fell by about 19% from April while diesel consumption, which is linked to industrial activity and accounts for over two-fifths of India’s fuel demand, fell by 19.9%, data compiled by state refiners showed.
Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 744,130 tonnes in the first four month of 2021, up by 4% year on year. Shipments of all PE grades increased. At the same time, PP deliveries to the Russian market were 523,900 tonnes in January-April 2021, up by 55% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas shipments of PP random copolymers decreased.
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