As India continues to push new energy vehicles in a bid to transform transportation in the country, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has announced the government will issue an order to all vehicle manufacturers – including those operating in the mass-market as well as premium segments – making flex-fuel engines mandatory for their vehicles in the next three to four months. Speaking at the stone-laying ceremony of a flyover in Pune, Gadkari said he hopes to see demand for petrol and diesel fall as more motorists switch to using vehicles powered by locally-produced ethanol.
" I have a wish. I would like to stop the petrol and diesel use in the country in my lifetime and our farmers can give the alternative to this in the form of ethanol. I am going to issue an order in the next three to four months, in which carmakers - from BMW, Mercedes to Tata and Mahindra - will be asked to make flex engines," said Gadkari.
Flex fuel, or flexible fuel, is an alternative fuel made of a combination of gasoline and methanol or ethanol.
Even two-wheeler manufacturers will be asked to work on flex-fuel engines for their scooters and motorcycles, with Gadkari saying he has asked Bajaj and TVS to not approach him until they have made progress on this front, according to PTI. Interestingly, TVS did launch an ethanol-powered variant of its Apache motorcycle - named the Apache RTR 200 Fi E100 - in 2019, but was made available in only three states: Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Karnataka.
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