“Government must promote flex-fuel for Atmnirbhar Bharat” – Madhav B Shriram, DCM Shriram Industries Ltd.
The success of India’s ethanol blending program owes a lot to the sugar mills & distillers dotted across the country. The next wave of bioenergy boom, whether in the field of CBG or flex-fuel too, rests largely on their shoulders. Subhash Chandra Yadav from I Am Renew had a conversation with Madhav B Shriram, Managing Director & CEO, DCM Shriram Industries Ltd and Vice President of ISMA– on the sidelines of ‘The Indian Sugar & Bioenergy Conference’ in New Delhi. As one of the leading sugar & ethanol makers, he shared his perspective on evolving biofuels’ story, stride into ethanol-CBG and what India must do to ensure that the bioenergy sector doesn’t lose momentum. Read more here:
DCM Shriram Industries has been an old & seasoned player in distillation. How’s your company doing in the ethanol and overall bioenergy sector?
Madhav Shriram: We have the original distillery that was set up during the Second World War for making power fuel from ethanol. Even today we are making a large amount of fuel ethanol for domestic and also for export purposes. We also do biogas generation. In the past, it used to be a biogas treatment for spent wash. We actually were the pioneers in developing that technology in-house in India. It used to be imported technology, but we developed state-of-the-art technology at Daurala Sugar (Uttar Pradesh).
Now we have a situation where the government has made rules necessitating zero discharge for distilleries. So, we use the organic material in the distillery spent wash for burning it and generating energy by burning the spent wash instead of heating it and converting it into biogas. The energy we recover from that is used to operate the distillery. It’s still something which is debatable because to my mind it’s something which is taken from nature and can be put back in a land environment application. It becomes food for the crop because we are only extracting the sugar out of it. What we take from nature, we put back into nature. But there are certain governmental promotions that require a clearance. We are trying to work and find a way out.
What’s the current capacity of DCM Sriram at present? Do you look to ramp it up or diversify?
Madhav Shriram: We are not looking to ramp up. Our installed capacity is 250 kilolitres per day (KLPD) on B-heavy molasses. Whatever molasses we produce in house plus a small amount that we buy is enough for us. We are hoping to do expansion for value-added products which are under development.
Talking about the ethanol industry, which is currently facing several controversies and policy debates, how do you see this positive initiative navigating these challenges?
Madhav Shriram: It is to the credit of the industry that we have been able to achieve this milestone of 20% blending in 2026. But this acceleration seems to have caused a ‘time mismatch’ between the new vehicles, which are capable of absorbing this kind of fuel and the retiring old vehicles. In my mind that is probably one of the reasons why there is such a hue and cry that ethanol is not compatible. Having said that, the country has saved almost Rs 2 lakh crores on foreign exchange by implementing this program. That is very substantial. And this money has gone into the pockets of our farmers. Our payment cycle to the farmers has improved drastically. So I think all in all, if this balance between being Atmanirbhar on energy, paying the farmers in time and developing future energy security is achieved, this is going to be an amazing program for the country.
Why do you think the rising sugar prices have opened a new debate in society?
Madhav Shriram: Ethanol basically comes from naturally produced C-molasses. There was some amount of B-heavy molasses being used, but in normal circumstances, out of 100 kilos, 4.5 kilos molasses comes out as C molasses (in sugar plants). In case of B-heavy, 6 kilos are taken out. So, even today we are seeing there is enough sugar in the system and there should be no problem. The industry, together with the government, is taking many active and proactive steps to correct the situation. This flare-up in sugar prices has been totally unnatural and we are hoping that it will get in control very soon.
The share of ethanol produced from food grains is rising and the same is declining for sugarcane. Many see, there could be food availability challenges. How do you see this?
Madhav Shriram: This is actually the damaged food grain which is being diverted. This is not really fit for human consumption. This is called ‘broken grain’ which is being given to the industry for making into ethanol. Only that grain is given to the industry for converting into other products.
What policy support do you think is important from the government at this point of time so that the ethanol, the dash of ethanol is not impeded?
Madhav Shriram: I think we need to stabilize the current level of blending at 20%. The auto-manufacturers are now moving very quickly on flex-fuel vehicles, which we can see. That is the real progress in my view for the future. And I am hoping that the government of India and the state governments also provide similar benefits to flex-fuel vehicles as they have accorded to electric vehicles in terms of GST waiver or sales tax waiver, or at least reduce the level of taxation. This will allow more eco-friendly vehicles to come into the road. Otherwise, instead of being dependent on the Middle East for petrol, we will become dependent on China for lithium. We don’t want that situation arising. We want to be Atmnirbhar (self-reliant). I think what the government’s focus is to promote EVs, should be for flex-fuel vehicles; together it has to be a multipronged approach.
