New Delhi, July 8: Reports claiming that consumers are facing operational issues with E20 ethanol-blended petrol are a complete misrepresentation of facts, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri declared. The Central Government clarified that the domestic automobile sector has smoothly adjusted to the current fuel standards, and any prospective transition to an upgraded E25 mix will happen strictly after meticulous technical trials are concluded.
A massive fleet of vehicles across the country is already operating on the mixed fuel without facing functional setbacks. Over twenty crore two-wheelers and twenty lakh four-wheelers currently run on the ethanol blend nationwide under a phased program meant to slash costly crude oil imports and incentivize local farming communities.
The petroleum minister expressed surprise over the sudden opposition, affirming that the transition has been stable and highly progressive over the past few years. He stated that the automobile manufacturers, as well as the people who service these vehicles, all say there is no difficulty, questioning why this sudden interest has surfaced. He maintained that the car manufacturers are entirely comfortable with E20, noting that each one of them has made a statement to that effect while consumers also appreciate the product.
Addressing anxieties that the administration might abruptly push for higher blending ratios, the minister clarified that evaluations are being carried out methodically. He asserted that if someone is suggesting E25, the government has made it clear that they are conducting tests which will take time. He declared that once the reports are available, the ministry will evaluate them and discuss the findings with the stakeholders and the automobile manufacturers, adding that he neither manufactures the cars nor the fuel. Additionally, the early infrastructure setup for an even higher E85 variant has officially started but will require a longer window to scale up.
