Policy changes needed in India for a bright biodiesel future

In India, calls for policy changes to help the biodiesel industry are being voiced and if implemented, could help biodiesel’s future role in the country. While jatropha, agricultural waste and other feedstocks show promise in India, they have some policy challenges for biodiesel producers.

Former professor Bharat Jhunjhunwala told the Free Press Journal in India, “One policy hurdle is that as per our current laws the producer cannot sell biodiesel directly to the consumers. The producer has to sell the biodiesel to the oil companies, who blend it with petroleum and sell in the market. Manufacturers can produce biodiesel at a lower cost than the sale price of diesel but they are not able to do this because of the intermediation of the oil companies. The oil companies have to pay taxes on the biodiesel blended with diesel, which makes it uneconomic to produce. The Government must exempt biodiesel from these taxes.”