Biofuel development in India centres mainly around the cultivation and processing of Jatropha plant seeds, which are very rich in oil, ranging from 27 to 40%, [1] and averaging 34.4%. [2] The drivers for this are historic, functional, economic, environmental, moral and political.
Jatropha curcas is a plant likely native to Mexico and Central America; it has been spread worldwide in tropical regions for medicinal uses. [3] [4] Jatropha oil has been used in India for several decades as biodiesel for the diesel fuel requirements of remote rural and forest communities; jatropha oil can be used directly after extraction (i.e. without refining) in diesel generators and engines. India's total biodiesel requirement is projected to grow to 3.6 million tonnes in 2011–12, with the positive performance of the domestic automobile industry. Analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Strategic Analysis of the Indian Biofuels Industry, reveals that the market is an emerging one and has a long way to go before it catches up with global competitors. [5]
The Government is currently implementing an ethanol-blending program and considering initiatives in the form of mandates for biodiesel. Due to these strategies, the rising population, and the growing energy demand from the transport sector, biofuels can be assured of a significant market in India. On 12 September 2008, the Indian Government announced its 'National Biofuel Policy'. It aims to meet 20% of India's diesel demand with fuel derived from plants. That will mean setting aside 140,000 square kilometres of land. Presently fuel yielding plants cover less than 5,000 square kilometres. [5]
Jatropha has the potential to provide economic benefits at the local level since under suitable management it has the potential to grow in dry marginal non-agricultural lands, thereby allowing villagers and farmers to leverage non-farm land for income generation. As well, increased Jatropha oil production delivers economic benefits to India on the macroeconomic or national level as it reduces the nation's fossil fuel import bill for diesel production (the main transportation fuel used in the country); minimising the expenditure of India's foreign-currency reserves for fuel allowing India to increase its growing foreign currency reserves (which can be better spent on capital expenditures for industrial inputs and production). And since Jatropha oil is carbon-neutral, large-scale production will improve the country's carbon emissions profile. Finally, since no food producing farmland is required for producing this biofuel (unlike corn or sugar cane ethanol, or palm oil diesel), it is considered the most politically and morally acceptable choice among India's current biofuel options; it has no known negative impact on the production of the massive amounts grains and other vital agriculture goods India produces to meet the food requirements of its massive population (circa 1.1 Billion people as of 2008). Other biofuels which displace food crops from viable agricultural land such as corn ethanol or palm biodiesel have caused serious price increases for basic food grains and edible oils in other countries.
Jatropha incentives in India is a part of India's goal to achieve energy independence by the year 2018. Jatropha oil is produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas, a plant that can grow in wastelands across India, and the oil is considered to be an excellent source of bio-diesel. India is keen on reducing its dependence on coal and petroleum to meet its increasing energy demand and encouraging Jatropha cultivation is a crucial component of its energy policy. However, in recent times the bio-fuel policy has come under critical review, on the way it has been promoted. [6]
Large plots of waste land have been selected for Jatropha cultivation and will provide much needed employment to the rural poor of India. [7] Businesses are also seeing the planting of Jatropha as a good business opportunity. [8] The Government of India has identified 400,000 square kilometres (98 million acres) of land where Jatropha can be grown, hoping it will replace 20% of India's diesel consumption by 2011. [9] Life-cycle analysis studies have shown favourable energy balance for production of jatropha-based biodiesel in India and also a potential GHG emission saving of 33-42% compared to fossil-based diesel. [10]
Dr. Abdul Kalam, the 11th President of India, was one of the strong advocates of Jatropha cultivation for the production of bio-diesel, [11] citing the suitability of a large amount of wasteland in India for the cultivation of the plant. [12]
The Government of India announced a National Biofuel Policy in 2008 that anticipated that around 20% of the country's domestic diesel demand would be met by biofuels including Jatropha-based fuels. [13] Circa 2010, the State Bank of India signed a Memorandum of Understanding with D1 Mohan, a joint venture of D1 Oils plc, to loan around 1.3 billion rupees to farmers in India for the cultivation of Jatropha, with the proviso that farmers would be able to pay the loans back by using the profits of selling the Jatropha seeds to D1 Mohan. [14]
In 2005, the Indian Railways announced plans to plant Jatropha trees on semi-arid land outside of railway stations in India as a part of its plans to make those lands commercially viable and to generate bio-diesel for use in its vehicles. At the time, the railways was facing diesel purchasing costs of around ₹4,000 crore on diesel alone and was seeking to reduce cost burdens. [15]
 | This section needs to be updated.(December 2016) |
Andhra Pradesh has entered into a formal agreement with Reliance Industries for Jatropha planting. The company has selected 200 acres (0.81 km2) of land at Kakinada to grow jatropha for high quality bio-diesel fuel. [16]
As of 2006, Kerala is planning a massive Jatropha planting campaign. [17]
Farmers in semi-arid regions of Karnataka are planting Jatropha as it is well suited to those conditions. [18]
Labland Biodiesel is a Mysore-based Private Limited Company. Since the year 2002, the Company is active in Biodiesel and Jatropha curcas-based Research and Development activities headed by its chairman and managing director, Dr. Sudheer Shetty. Jatropha seeds are used in ksrtc, bmtc, government buses [19]
Tamil Nadu is aggressively promoting the plantation of Jatropha to help farmers over come the loss due to irregular rains during the past few years. The government has contracted the development of Jatropha in Tamil Nadu in a large scale to four entrepreneurs. Namely M/s Mohan Breweries and Distilleries Limited. M/s Shiva Distilleries Limited, M/s Dharani Sugars and Chemicals Limited and M/s Riverway Agro Products Private Ltd. Currently the firms have cultivated the plant in about 3 square kilometres as against the goal of 50 km². The government of Tamil Nadu has also abolished purchase tax on Jatropha.[ citation needed ], but presently government has announced to reduce the 7.5% tolgate charges to 2.5%
Jatropha is ideally suited for cultivation in Rajasthan as it needs very little water which is scarce in Rajasthan. Jatropha plantations have been undertaken in Udaipur, Kota, Sikar, Banswara, Chittor and Churu districts. In the Udaipur district, Jatropha curcas is planted in agroforestry formats with food or cash crops on marginal lands (in India often called waste lands). As its leaves are toxic and therefore non-palatable to livestock, they remain intact in their sapling stage, unlike most other tree saplings.[ citation needed ] These Jatropha Seeds are very much favourable for the Germination. Udaipur is the major supplier of the Jatropha Seeds especially for the Germination. Many companies and Govt are taking interest to collect best seeds from Udaipur. Bulk Agro (I) Pvt Ltd is the elite of the suppliers.
In September 2007, the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) joined hands with the Maharashtra State Farming Corporation Ltd (MSFCL) for a jatropha seed-based bio-diesel venture. As part of the project, jatropha plants would be grown on 500 acres (2 km²) in Nashik and Aurangabad. [20] In November 2005, the Maharashtra Government aimed to cultivate jatropha on 600 km² in the state, with half the land going to the public sector and the other half to the private sector. [21] On 1 July 2006, Pune Municipal Corporation took the lead among Indian cities in using bio-diesel from jatropha in over 100 public buses. [22]
Gulabrao Kale studied the prospects of plantation in the Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra and under his guidance, Govind Gramin Vikas Pratishthan (GOGVIP), decided to plan under DPAP program of government. Initially, it was a very difficult task to make farmers ready for the Jatropha plantation. When 20–25 farmers were offered the plan, only 2–3 farmers were convinced to plant jatropha. Lack of literacy was a big hindrance in convincing the farmers. It was hard to convince them about the future benefits of the plant and its potential to produce bio-diesel, an equivalent of diesel. But after untiring and continuous efforts more than 1000 farmers are working with the GOGVIP for the Jatropha planting program now.
For this task, under the watershed development program, GOGVIP took an area of 10.92 square kilometres for making CCTs. To date, more than 2 million Jatropha plants have been planted in the target area of the five villages of Vankute, Dhoki, Dhotre, Dhavalpuri and Gajdipoor in the project. The villages are in the remote locations and that made connecting them with GOGVIP a difficult task. [23] [24] [25]
D1 Williamson Magor Bio Fuel Limited was a joint venture company between D1 Oils plc, UK and Williamson Magor group. This biodiesel initiative was incorporated in July 2006. Advocating the creation of energy from renewable resources, the company had promoted Jatropha Plantations on the wasteland possessed by the farmers in the North Eastern States, Orissa and Jharkhand. The Company had a comprehensive network to manufacture bio-diesel from the oilseeds harvested by the farmers.
Biodiesel initiative hoped to benefit local communities through commercial plantation of Jatropha. NGOs and self-help groups were also involved.
Chhattisgarh has decided to plant 160 million saplings of jatropha in all its 16 districts during 2006 with the aim of becoming a bio-fuel self-reliant state by 2015. [26] Chhattisgarh plans to earn Rs. 40 billion annually by selling seeds after 2010. The central government has provided Rs. 135 million to Chhattisgarh in 2013 for developing jatropha nursery facilities.
In May 2005, Chief Minister Raman Singh became the first head of a state government to use jatropha diesel for his official vehicle. Chhattisgarh plans to replace with jatropha fuel all state-owned vehicles using diesel and petrol by 2007 . Chhattisgarh Bio-fuel Development Authority now oversees the production of the Jatropha curcas seed as a rich source of bio-diesel. [27] Chhattisgarh government tie up with public sector company Indian oil to produce biodiesel and maintain jatropha plantation in Chhattisgarh name of this company Indian oil CREDA Biofules Ltd. this company is established on 2009 at sankar nagar raipur this company covered all district of Chhattisgarh to plantation of Jatropha curcas .
The Project on Development of Agronomic practices for Jatropha curcas is being implemented, with the financial assistance of DBT, New Delhi. Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, India has Planted Jatropha on 3 square kilometres, with the financial assistance of National Oilseeds and Vegetable oils development Board.
As of the late 2010s and early 2020s, the projects around Jatropha-based biodiesel are widely considered to have been failures due to shortages in seed supplies, high costs for plantation and maintenance, and reductions in global demand for biodiesels. [28] Consequently, there has been a shift towards other sources of biofuel, such as from rice paddy in Chhattisgarh. [29]
Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil. Biofuel can be produced from plants or from agricultural, domestic or industrial biowaste. Biofuels are mostly used for transportation, but can also be used for heating and electricity. Biofuels are regarded as a renewable energy source. However, the use of biofuel has been controversial because of the several disadvantages associated with the use of it. These include for example : the "food vs fuel" debate, biofuel production methods being sustainable or not, leading to deforestation and loss of biodiversity or not.
Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as animal fat (tallow), soybean oil, or some other vegetable oil with an alcohol, producing a methyl, ethyl or propyl ester by the process of transesterification.
Jatropha is a genus of flowering plants in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae. The name is derived from the Greek words ἰατρός (iatros), meaning "physician", and τροφή (trophe), meaning "nutrition", hence the common name physic nut. Another common name is nettlespurge. It contains approximately 170 species of succulent plants, shrubs and trees. Most of these are native to the Americas, with 66 species found in the Old World. Plants produce separate male and female flowers. As with many members of the family Euphorbiaceae, Jatropha contains compounds that are highly toxic. Jatropha species have traditionally been used in basketmaking, tanning and dye production. In the 2000s, one species, Jatropha curcas, generated interest as an oil crop for biodiesel production and also medicinal importance when used as lamp oil; native Mexicans in the Veracruz area developed by selective breeding a Jatropha curcas variant lacking the toxic compounds, yielding a better income when used as source for biodiesel, because of its edible byproduct. Toxicity may return if edible Jatropha is pollinated by toxic types.
Willie Nelson Biodiesel is an American company started by singer-songwriter Willie Nelson, that produces biofuel under the brand name BioWillie. Nelson became interested in biofuels in 2004 after his wife bought a diesel car, which she fueled only with biodiesel. They were impressed by the efficiency and performance of the biofuels and their potential to end the dependence of the United States on foreign oil sources, as well as to provide the family farmers with work to produce it. The same year, he and his wife became partners with Bob and Kelly King in the building of two Biodiesel plants, one in Salem, Oregon and the other at Carl's Corner, Texas.
This article describes the use and availability of biodiesel in various countries around the world.
Neste MY Renewable Diesel is a vegetable oil refining fuel production process commercialized by the Finnish oil and refining company Neste. Whether as an admixture or in its pure form, Neste MY Renewable Diesel is able to supplement or partially replace diesel fuel without problems. Neste MY Renewable Diesel guarantees that every gallon sold meets ASTM D975 and EN 15940 specifications in compliance with OEM standards.
Pongamia oil is derived from the seeds of the Millettia pinnata tree, which is native to tropical and temperate Asia. Millettia pinnata, also known as Pongamia pinnata or Pongamia glabra, is common throughout Asia and thus has many different names in different languages, many of which have come to be used in English to describe the seed oil derived from M. pinnata; Pongamia is often used as the generic name for the tree and is derived from the genus the tree was originally placed in. Other names for this oil include honge oil, kanuga oil, karanja oil, and pungai oil.
Avesthagen Limited is an integrated systems biology platform company headquartered in Bangalore, India. It was founded as an academic startup in 1998 by Villoo Morawala-Patell, a Rockefeller Fellow and grantee within NCBS-UAS, Bangalore. Avesthagen started business operations on March 21, 2001 with Series-A round investment led by ICICI Ventures and Tata Industries. Dr.Villoo Morawala Patell, is the Chairperson and Managing Director of Avesthagen Limited.
Biofuel is fuel that is produced from organic matter (biomass), including plant materials and animal waste. It is considered a renewable source of energy that can assist in reducing carbon emissions. The two main types of biofuel currently being produced in Australia are biodiesel and bioethanol, used as replacements for diesel and petrol (gasoline) respectively. As of 2017 Australia is a relatively small producer of biofuels, accounting for 0.2% of world bioethanol production and 0.1% of world biodiesel production.
Vegetable oils are increasingly used as a substitute for fossil fuels. Vegetable oils are the basis of biodiesel, which can be used like conventional diesel. Some vegetable oil blends are used in unmodified vehicles, but straight vegetable oil often needs specially prepared vehicles which have a method of heating the oil to reduce its viscosity and surface tension, sometimes specially made injector nozzles, increased injection pressure and stronger glow-plugs, in addition to fuel pre-heating is used. Another alternative is vegetable oil refining.
Jatropha curcas is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, that is native to the American tropics, most likely Mexico and Central America. It is originally native to the tropical areas of the Americas from Mexico to Argentina, and has been spread throughout the world in tropical and subtropical regions around the world, becoming naturalized or invasive in many areas. The specific epithet, "curcas", was first used by Portuguese doc Garcia de Orta more than 400 years ago. Common names in English include physic nut, Barbados nut, poison nut, bubble bush or purging nut. In parts of Africa and areas in Asia such as India it is often known as "castor oil plant" or "hedge castor oil plant", but it is not the same as the usual castor oil plant, Ricinus communis.
Second-generation biofuels, also known as advanced biofuels, are fuels that can be manufactured from various types of non-food biomass. Biomass in this context means plant materials and animal waste used especially as a source of fuel.
China has set the goal of attaining one percent of its renewable energy generation through bioenergy in 2020.
Algae fuel, algal biofuel, or algal oil is an alternative to liquid fossil fuels that uses algae as its source of energy-rich oils. Also, algae fuels are an alternative to commonly known biofuel sources, such as corn and sugarcane. When made from seaweed (macroalgae) it can be known as seaweed fuel or seaweed oil.
Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) is a biofuel made by the hydrocracking or hydrogenation of vegetable oil. Hydrocracking breaks big molecules into smaller ones using hydrogen while hydrogenation adds hydrogen to molecules. These methods can be used to create substitutes for gasoline, diesel, propane, kerosene and other chemical feedstock. Diesel fuel produced from these sources is known as green diesel or renewable diesel.
An important biofuel in the United Kingdom is biojet.
Sustainable biofuel is biofuel produced in a sustainable manner. It is not based on petroleum or other fossil fuels. It includes not using plants that are used for food stuff to produce the fuel thus disrupting the world's food supply.
The use of biofuels varies by region. The world leaders in biofuel development and use are Brazil, United States, France, Sweden and Germany.
SG Biofuels is a privately held bioenergy crop company, which grows and researches Jatropha curcas for the production of biodiesel, bio jet fuel, and specialty chemicals.
Global Clean Energy Holdings (OTC:GCEH) is a Southern California-based renewable energy company with interests in the production and commercialization of non-food-based feedstocks used for the production of biofuels, biomass, and renewable chemicals. It was founded in 2007.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)In one of his speech, he said that India is having about 600,000 km² of wasteland out of which over 300,000 km² is suitable for cultivation of Jatropha plants.
Until recently, B.K. Nagendrappa didn't care much at all about jatropha, an ugly wild green shrub that thrives in India. Now, the coconut grower hopes to plant as many as 12 acres (4.9 ha) of the stuff on his land near Bangalore.
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