India To Roll Out E85 Fuel to Boost Flex-Fuel Mobility

The government is set to introduce E85 fuel, a petrol blend containing 80-85 per cent ethanol, on Friday as part of its efforts to scale up flex-fuel mobility. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri will attend the launch event in New Delhi. The rollout comes soon after manufacturers such as Maruti Suzuki and Hero MotoCorp have introduced flex-fuel variants of high-volume models including the WagonR and Splendor, ET Industry reported.

Puri had earlier highlighted that the transition to flex-fuel mobility must remain economically viable for consumers. Referring to available studies, he indicated that if E85 fuel is priced significantly lower than E20, users could offset the higher cost of flex-fuel vehicles within around three years through fuel savings.

At the launch event for Maruti Suzuki’s flex-fuel vehicle yesterday, Puri outlined a broader roadmap for developing a nationwide ecosystem. Under this plan, E85 has been identified as the mono-fuel standard for flex-fuel vehicles under Bureau of Indian Standards specifications.

Also read: 100 E85 Fuel Stations by Year-End in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai in Push for Flex-Fuel Vehicles

Amid concerns around emissions, NITI Aayog has classified ethanol-based flex-fuel vehicles, including those capable of running on E85, as zero-emission vehicles. 

"E85 fuel also produces near-zero particulate matter (PM) emissions, making flex-fuel vehicles a promising solution for addressing the country’s growing air pollution challenge," the government said in a release on Thursday.

The initial phase will see the rollout of 50 to 100 flex-fuel-compatible fuel stations across key corridors, including Delhi-NCR and the Mumbai–Pune–Nagpur belt. This network is expected to expand to around 500 outlets by the end of the year and scale up further to approximately 5,000 stations across major cities by the end of 2027.