Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has urged India’s sugar industry to look beyond traditional sugar production and diversify into products such as compressed biogas, ethanol, bio-manure and sustainable aviation fuel.
Speaking at a National Efficiency Awards event, Gadkari said the future of conventional sugar production was limited and argued that sugar mills could unlock much greater value by using sugarcane waste and other agricultural residues.
‘Future Of Plain Sugar Is Mediocre’
Gadkari said sugar mills should not depend only on producing conventional sugar.
According to him, increasing production costs in India and competition from countries such as Brazil are making the traditional sugar business increasingly challenging.
He suggested that mills should instead develop multiple revenue streams from sugarcane and its by-products.
Sugarcane Waste Can Produce CBG
One of Gadkari’s major suggestions is to use sugarcane waste to produce compressed biogas, or CBG.
Sugarcane residue, along with materials such as agricultural stubble, rice straw, bamboo, bagasse and Napier grass, can be processed through anaerobic digestion to produce biogas.
After purification and compression, the resulting CBG can be used in applications similar to natural gas.
CBG Can Be Used In Vehicles
CBG could potentially be used as a transport fuel in vehicles that currently run on CNG.
Unlike conventional CNG, which comes primarily from underground natural gas reserves, CBG is produced from organic waste and agricultural material.
Gadkari believes greater production of CBG could help reduce India’s dependence on imported fossil fuels while also creating another source of income for farmers and sugar mills.
Government Targets 1,908 CBG Plants
Gadkari said 1,908 CBG plants have been registered across India, although only 132 are currently operational.
He said India has the potential to produce around 50,000 tonnes of CBG per day, while current production is only around 2% of that potential.
The government has also introduced procurement obligations and a fixed procurement price of Rs 106 per kg, according to the minister.
Rs 2.5 Lakh Crore Rural Economy Opportunity
Gadkari said the expansion of the CBG industry could potentially bring around Rs 2.5 lakh crore into the rural economy.
He also estimated that the sector could create as many as 15 lakh jobs.
The broader objective is to create economic value from agricultural waste while reducing the amount of money India spends importing petrol, diesel and gas.
Sugar Mills Could Pay Farmers More
Gadkari also linked diversification to farmer incomes.
He said the additional value generated from sugarcane by-products could potentially allow sugar mills to increase payments to farmers from around Rs 4,000 per tonne to as much as Rs 6,000 per tonne.
This would give farmers another potential benefit from the growing market for biofuels and other agricultural products.
Push For Sustainable Aviation Fuel
Gadkari has also asked sugar mills to explore sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF.
The aviation industry is looking for alternatives that can reduce dependence on conventional fossil-based jet fuel, creating a potential market for bio-based fuels.
For sugar mills, producing SAF alongside ethanol, CBG and bio-manure could provide additional revenue streams from the same agricultural ecosystem.
E20 Has Already Changed The Sugar Industry
The push comes after India expanded the use of E20 petrol, containing 20% ethanol.
India’s ethanol blending programme has created a major additional market for sugarcane-derived ethanol, reducing the industry’s dependence on sugar as its primary product.
Gadkari’s latest message is therefore broader: sugar mills should increasingly become diversified bioenergy and agricultural processing businesses rather than relying mainly on conventional sugar.
Summary
Nitin Gadkari has urged sugar mills to diversify beyond conventional sugar into compressed biogas, ethanol, bio-manure and sustainable aviation fuel. He said CBG made from sugarcane waste and other agricultural residues could be used in vehicles, reduce fossil fuel imports and create rural jobs. Gadkari also said diversification could potentially help mills pay farmers higher prices for sugarcane.