E-Paper
Punjab plans Asia's first bio-ethanol plant
Punjab would soon sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with partner companies to set up Asia's first bio-ethanol manufacturing and refining unit with a design capacity of 60,000 tonnes of cellulosic ethanol per year (75 million litres per year) with 3 lakh tonnes of paddy straw as feedstock, a spokesman said here.
Punjab would soon sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with partner companies to set up Asia's first bio-ethanol manufacturing and refining unit with a design capacity of 60,000 tonnes of cellulosic ethanol per year (75 million litres per year) with 3 lakh tonnes of paddy straw as feedstock, a spokesman said here.
Punjab renewable energy minister Bikram Singh Majithia chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday in New Delhi, where CVC India Infrastructures Ltd chairman K Krishan made a presentation to set up the project at a cost of Rs 950 crore.
The other companies involved in this mega project include Beta Renewables and Novozymes, which would explore the possibility of setting up five more such projects with $1 billion investment in the state, once the first unit is established, the spokesman added.
The state, as a per a study, produces 15 million tonnes of paddy straw and its maximum usage for such bio-ethanol refineries can result in avoiding the major environmental problem of straw burning.
