(T.E.T)
Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. has recently planned to roll out 10% Ethanol Blended Petrol (E10) across the seven North Easters states with a 100% rollout in Guwahati.
The blending of 10 % ethanol in Petrol in India is a practice which is nearly two decades old now and has been implemented across the country. Implementation in the North East was held up till now due to unavailability of sufficient quantity of Ethanol.
The company stated doubts of ethanol getting mixed with water due to its hygroscopic nature have been raised by some stakeholders. Indian Oil would like to clarify that all the necessary steps like ensuring NIL water presence in Petrol tanks and using watertight gaskets in tank manholes will be done in Petrol Pumps before introduction of EBMS which will ensures that no moisture is retained in the underground tanks.
Additionally, the water dip of every tank is a mandatory check in every petrol pump every morning, irrespective of whether the Petrol Pump is selling E10 or normal petrol. In case of even traces of water, the automation system in the petrol pump will immediately raise an alarm for corrective action.
The company added that all IndianOil petrol pumps are 100 % automated. The automation system in the petrol pumps ensures correct quality and quantity of fuel which ensures that customers are always given the best product in an IndianOil Retail Outlet.
The company stated currently, in India, nearly 85% of the crude oil is imported. Thus, being an import dependant country, blending of ethanol helps reduce the amount of crude oil imported and helps in improving India’s balance of payments. Ethanol blending has the potential to save the country nearly Rs. 30,000 Crore per annum. Money thus saved from leaving the country will be earning opportunities for various stakeholders like farmers, entrepreneurs etc. which in turn lead to generation of addi ..
