Indian state-owned Krishak Bharati Cooperative (Kribhco) plans to invest Rs10bn ($125.3mn) to set up three ethanol plants over the next three years, a company source said on last Wednesday.
“The first ethanol plant will be set up near Kribhco’s existing urea and fertilizer manufacturing facility at Hazira in western Gujarat state,” the company source said, adding that once operational, the plant would have the capacity to produce 250 kilolitres/day of ethanol. Kribhco expects to invest around Rs 3.5bn to set up the new ethanol plant, the source said.
The company plans to use broken rice and maize as feedstock for the ethanol plant which it will source from state-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) as well as from the open market.
“We expect to commission the plant by the end of calendar year 2024,” he added.
The other two plants which will also have a production capacity of 250 kilolitres/day of ethanol will be set up at Nellore district in Andhra Pradesh and at Karimnagar district in Telangana, the source said. The company expects to begin construction work on both these plants towards the end of calendar year 2022, he said.
“Kribhco plans to invest a total of Rs7bn to set up the two ethanol plants in south India,” he added. The company has signed a long-term offtake agreement with Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) for the ethanol.
It also plans to market its ethanol to other state-owned oil marketing firms such as Indian Oil Corp (IOC) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) for blending in auto fuel, he added
Kribhco is a state-owned firm engaged in fertilizer production and distribution.
