Second Generation Biofuels in India –
Relevance and Status
Narasimhan Santhanam
Energy Alternatives India
(EAI)
About EAI
• Leading Indian renewable energy business intelligence,
market strategy consulting firm
• Work on all primary renewable energy sectors – solar,
wind, bio-fuels / biomass, waste-to-energy and small
hydro
• Work on market research, entry and diversification
strategy, economic and financial modeling and prefeasibility analysis
• Team comprises professionals from IITs and IIMs, with
renewable energy, industry research and economics
backgrounds
• Based out of Chennai, India
• More at www.eai.in
Contents
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Biofuels
Biofuels in India
Second Generation Biofuels in India
Cellulosic Ethanol
Jatropha Biodiesel
Opportunities for India
Benefits for India
Second Gen Biofuels – Current Status
The Road Ahead
Introduction to Biofuels
Biofuels
Ethanol
1st
generation
Corn
Cane
Maize
2nd
generation
Switchgrass
Cellulosic
Gasification
Biodiesel
1st
generation
2nd
3rd
generation generation
Palm
Jatropha
Soybeans Gasification
Rapeseed
Algae
Biofuels in India
• Mainly uses first generation feedstocks
• Ethanol - Sugarcane molasses
• Biodiesel - Rapeseed and other edible oils for
biodiesel
Govt Incentives and Plans
Specific mandates and incentives for biofuels
– 20% biofuels by 2017 (National Policy on Biofuels,
2008)
– Mandatory 5% blending for ethanol and biodiesel
(Nov 2009)
– Government agreed on a price of 34 rupees per liter
of petrol for biodiesel purchase by oil companies
(Nov 2009)
– Incentives for Jatropha cultivation (IREDA…)
Inspite of Mandates & Incentives…
• Fuel Ethanol - 60 million gallons in India vs. 15
billion gal worldwide in 2008 (0.4%)
• Biodiesel - 10 million gallons vs. 3 billion gallons in
2008 (0.3%)
• Less than 0.5% of total transportation fuel in India
uses biofuels
• It can be inferred that India’s performance in
biofuels has been very poor
Possible Solution
Second Generation Biofuels
Why Second Gen Biofuels Could Be
the Solution
First Gen
Second Gen
Food vs. Fuel
Non food biomass
Needs arable land
Can grow on marginal lands
Not scalable
Vast range of biomass makes
it scalable
Low yields and viability
Higher yields; more viable
Second Generation Biofuels in India
2nd Gen Ethanol - Cellulosic Ethanol
• Made from cellulosic biomass
• Examples of cellulosic biomass – corn stover,
switchgrass, crop residues.
• Scalability is high, but so is current cost of
production
• High cost owing to need for pretreatment
• In late pilot stage, not yet commercialized
2nd Gen Ethanol - Cellulosic Ethanol
Cellulosic Ethanol Potential in India
• India produces about 440 million tons of crop
residues annually; this translates to about 130
million T of ethanol per annum
• India has 63 million ha waste land; translates to
about maximum potential of over 500 million T of
cellulosic ethanol per annum.This is equivalent to
350 tons of petroleum.
• India’s total crude oil import is about 110 MT per
annum
Cellulosic Ethanol Status
• Been primarily a North American phenomenon
• Relatively new to India
• Mostly in R&D stage, only a few pilot projects
Cellulosic Ethanol – Prospects & Problems
Prospects
Problems
Effective utilization of
waste biomass
Technology not yet
commercial
Could take care of all
India’s gasoline substitute
needs
High costs of production
Some process routes
highly scalable
Lack of R&D in India
2nd Gen Biodiesel - Jatropha Biodiesel
• First plantations started in the early part of this
decade
• India was the first country to grow it on large scale
• Plantations now in other parts of Asia and Africa.
• No large scale Jatropha biodiesel production yet
2nd Gen Biodiesel - Jatropha Biodiesel
Source: http://www.rrbconference.com/bestanden/downloads/125.pdf
Jatropha Biodiesel Growth in India
Year
CAGR
2008
Area under
cultivation
(mill ha)
0.5
2010
1.2
55%
2015
1.9
10%
Jatropha Biodiesel in India Prospects & Problems
Prospects
Problems
Significantly reduce our
fossil fuel dependency
Much lower yields than
expected
Utilize marginal lands
Lack of expert knowledge
across entire value chain
Generate rural
employment
Not reliable enough for
farmers to invest in it
Opportunities for India in Second Gen
Biofuels
Opportunities for
– Oil companies
– Farmers
– Agri R&D companies
– Equipment manufacturers
– Vegetable oil companies
– Sugar mills and distilleries
Opportunities for India
in Second Gen BF
Opportunities for
– Logistics Companies
• Biomass to fuels requires significant
transportation and material handling
– Local employment opportunities
• The investment in the ethanol industry per
job created is $11,000, which is
significantly less than the $220,000 per
job in the petroleum field.
Benefits for India from Second Gen
Biofuels
• Lower fuel import bill
• Less dependence on Middle East for oil
• More environmentally sustainable transport fuels
• Higher rural employment
India’s Current Status in Second Gen
Biofuels
• Second Gen biofuels yet to make any impact in
India
• Reasons:
– Govt not enforcing mandates and not enough
incentives
– Low investments by govt and private sector
– Little R&D
The Road Ahead
• Set up apex bodies that can act co-ordinate
national level activities – equivalent of National
Biodiesel Board for the US
• Invest significantly in R&D for both Jatropha and
Cellulosic Ethanol
• Sponsor grants and other funding to accelerate
research and pilot plant projects in second gen
biofuels
Second Generation Biofuels Can Provide
a Solution to India’s Transport Fuel
Woes, But Only If Government and
Industry Take Proactive Measures and
Make Significant Investments
Thank You