In India, IndianOil Corporation Ltd (IndianOil) and compatriot biofuel technology developer and provider Praj Industries Ltd (Praj) have signed a term sheet to advance plans to strengthen biofuel production capacities in India. Various biofuels and biomaterials covered under this Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) include sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), ethanol, compressed biogas (CBG), biodiesel, and bio-bitumen among others.
According to a statement, the announcement follows an earlier agreement in October 2021, when the Companies had entered into an agreement to form a 50:50 joint venture to this end.
The collaboration with an Indian biofuel major – Praj, is a remarkable milestone in IndianOil’s green energy transition journey. It will strengthen our resolve to achieve our goal of net-zero operational emissions by 2046 and maintain our leadership in the green energy domain, said Shrikant Madhav Vaidya, Chairman of IndianOil.
He added that India being an agrarian economy, offers the advantage of sufficient availability of feedstock.
Indigenous biofuels will be a game changer in helping India chart its decarbonization journey. Biofuels offer a win-win situation by reducing dependence on crude imports, boosting the rural economy, and offering sustainable, cleaner mobility options, Shrikant Madhav Vaidya said.
IndianOil and Praj have been collaborating to facilitate India’s energy transition towards a greener future in the past as well.
The nation’s first-of-its-kind advanced biofuel refinery at IndianOil’s Panipat complex is based on Praj’s proprietary 2G technology. This year in May, IndianOil and Praj partnered with AirAsia India and flew India’s first-ever commercial passenger flight powered by a blend of ‘indigenous’ Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). We are proud of our partnership with IndianOil, which is further reinforced by this important milestone, said Dr Pramod Chaudhari, Founder and Chairman of Praj Industries.
He also added that biofuels positively impact the socio-economic and environmental aspects thereby facilitating sustainable development. In pursuit of energy self-reliance by leveraging captive resources, the country has aggressive plans to reconfigure the transportation fuel mix with biofuels.
Biofuels are an integral part of India’s flourishing bioeconomy that plays a significant role as a sustainable climate action tool.
Readying India to build sustainable aviation fuel production capacity in pursuit of clean skies is our priority, to strengthen Atmanirbhar Bharat, Dr Pramod Chaudhari said.
