With India having achieved nationwide E20 rollout, attention is increasingly shifting to what comes next in the country’s ethanol roadmap. According to Vijendra Singh, President of the All India Distilleries Association (AIDA), E25 is likely to be the next significant milestone in India’s blending journey.
Speaking to Autocar Professional, Singh said he expects E25 to emerge before E30, although both blends could eventually coexist as vehicle manufacturers certify products for higher ethanol compatibility.
“I think we will see E25 first. E25 and E30 will go hand in hand as OEMs bring compliant vehicles and certify them for higher blends,” Singh said.
According to him, the progression towards higher ethanol blends will depend on alignment between oil marketing companies, policymakers and automakers. He believes consumers will naturally gravitate towards higher blends if they are offered at a lower cost than conventional petrol.
At the same time, Singh sees E85 and E100 evolving as a separate ecosystem built around flex-fuel vehicles rather than as a direct extension of the current blending programme.
“E25 and E30 will run together, while E85 and E100 will run in a different stream with dedicated flex-fuel vehicles,” he said.
Singh also argued that flex-fuel vehicles should receive policy support similar to the incentives extended to electric vehicles during their initial growth phase. Such measures, he believes, could accelerate consumer adoption while helping India further reduce its dependence on imported fossil fuels.
For the ethanol industry, the next phase is not merely about increasing blending percentages but about creating a broader ecosystem encompassing higher blends, flex-fuel vehicles and greater domestic fuel production. As India moves beyond E20, AIDA believes E25 could become the country’s next major stepping stone towards a more ethanol-intensive transport sector.