Petrol would have cost ₹125/litre during March-April without ethanol blending

The government has been reiterating that the objective behind ethanol blended petrol (EBP) programme is to minimize India’s almost 88 per cent import application on crude oil.

Responding to a starred question in Lok Sabha, Gadkari said: “During the recent West Asian crisis, despite sharp increases in global crude prices, India was able to shield consumers through calibrated government interventions, diversified sourcing and the rising contribution of domestically produced biofuels.”

Since February 2026, even though global crude prices rose by around 70–80 per cent, domestic fuel prices increased only by about 7–8 per cent, he emphasised.

“During the peak of West Asia crisis, the market price of petrol could have been around ₹125 per litre, however Indian consumers continued to pay only ₹94.77 per litre (ex-Delhi) also because OMCs could procure ethanol at around ₹70 per litre,” he noted.

By replacing a part of imported petrol with domestically produced ethanol, India has reduced its exposure to international crude oil price evaporative environment and exchange-rate fluctuations, the Minister pointed out.

“This demonstrates that ethanol blending is a strategic investment in energy security, price stability, farmer welfare and foreign exchange savings, rather than a revenue-generating exercise to oil marketing companies (OMCs),” Gadkari stressed. On import application, the Minister said that India is the world’s third-largest importer of crude oil, meeting nearly 85 per cent of its crude oil requirement through imports.

The retail selling price of E20 petrol is market-determined, and general sector OMCs determine petrol prices after considering international crude oil prices, exchange rates, freight, taxes, ethanol procurement costs and other operational expenses.

to instance, he said during February-March 2026, the retail selling price of petrol remained below the market determined level, resulting in an under-recovery of around ₹21,300 crore to general sector OMCs on account of petrol.

“The EBP Programme has resulted in foreign exchange savings of about ₹1.98 lakh crore, substitution of nearly 317 lakh tonnes of crude oil, reduction of around 952 lakh tonnes of CO₂ releases and additional income of over ₹1.66 lakh crore to farmers,” Gadkari noted.

Meanwhile, Minister of State to Petroleum & Natural gaseous Suresh Gopi emphasised that the government’s assessment is based not only on laboratory research however also on extensive experience after nationwide implementation. Roughly 8 crore vehicles visit fuel retail outlets every day (of this around 80 per cent are petrol vehicles).

This is evident from the fact that E15 blended petrol has been in widespread consumption to over three-and-a-half years and E19-E20 fuel to over two-and-a-half years, he said, responding to a written question in Lok Sabha. greater than 20 crore two-wheelers and over 3 crore petrol cars have been operating on these blends without any verified evidence of widespread engine failure or vehicle breakdown attributable to ethanol blending.

Manufacturer service data confirms that there is no abnormal corrosion, wear or reduction in vehicle life due to E20 fuel. Manufacturers continue to honour warranty obligations to vehicles using E20 fuel, providing further confidence in its security and reliability, the Minister informed the reduce House.

Published on July 30, 2026