&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Auto experts reject concerns over E20, say even F1 cars run on it; back govt")
A panel of automobile and energy experts on Saturday defended India’s E20 ethanol blending programme and rejected its criticism, while asserting that extensive testing has found no evidence that the fuel poses any concerns for vehicles. The experts said that the E20 fuel, with 20% ethanol content, has undergone extensive scientific testing and is safe even for vehicles manufactured before the E20 mandate.
They also backed the government’s stance, saying the ethanol push is tied to lower emissions, defined standards, and reduced oil dependence.
They also pointed out that ethanol is used in Formula 1 racing cars and argued that the transition to E20 has come after years of scientific evaluation and regulatory approvals.
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The experts made the remarks during a press conference on ethanol amid an ongoing debate over the government’s E20 petrol mandate and claims circulating on social media about its impact on vehicle performance.
The panel included Engineers India Limited (EIL) former CMD Vartika Shukla, Bajaj Auto Circle Head Manpreet Singh, TVS Senior Vice President (Corporate Affairs) Prashad Krishnan, Toyota Kirloskar Motor Country Head and Executive Vice President (Corporate Affairs and Governance) Vikram Gulati, Maruti Suzuki Senior Executive Officer Rahul Bharti, Hyundai India representative Puneet Anand and Hero Moto representative Ashutosh Verma.
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‘Extensive testing carried out before E20 rollout’
Engineers India Limited (EIL) former CMD Vartika Shukla said ethanol blending did not happen overnight and noted that India achieved its E20 target in December 2025. She said the automobile industry carried out extensive testing before the rollout and added that the programme aims to reduce carbon emissions. She further said that several countries, including the US, Germany, and Canada, already use E20 fuel and that E20 fuel complies with Bharat Stage VI (BS VI) standards.
Representatives of major automobile manufacturers said laboratory testing, certification exercises, and real-world vehicle data did not support claims that E20 petrol causes engine damage or excessive wear in vehicles designed for lower ethanol blends.
Very good fuel: Toyota’s Vikram Gulati
Toyota’s Vikram Gulati said the automobile industry operates under a strong regulatory framework and that fuel specifications are clearly defined. He said manufacturers engineer vehicles thoroughly before independent testing agencies approve them for consumers.
Gulati said ethanol is a “very good” fuel, and some of the earliest cars introduced in the early 1900s ran on ethanol. He added that Formula 1 racing cars also use ethanol-based fuel. He said ethanol helps reduce carbon emissions and described the recent West Asia crisis as a wake-up call as it exposed vulnerabilities in energy supply and crude oil dependence.
‘Didn’t find anything of concern in E20’
Maruti Suzuki Senior Executive Officer Rahul Bharti said India mandated E20 fuel from 2023 and acknowledged that the key concern relates to vehicles manufactured and sold before 2023. “That is the central question, and we haven’t found anything of concern in E20 fuel.”
Govt junks E20’s excess water consumption concerns
The press conference came after the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas issued a detailed 10-point rebuttal to what it described as misinformation circulating on social media about the country’s E20 ethanol blending programme.
The ministry rejected claims that producing one litre of ethanol consumes 10,000 litres of water and said ethanol distilleries consume around 3-5 litres of processed water for every litre of ethanol produced and increasingly operate Zero Liquid Discharge systems to recycle water.
