Moily asks oil firms to float tenders for ethanol

New Delhi (PTI): With just less than half the ethanol procured so far for doping with petrol, Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily on Monday asked oil firms to float tenders for remaining quantities this month and tie-up supplies at the earliest. Oil firms need 100 crore litre of ethanol to implement the 5 per cent mandatory doping in petrol but so far only 40 crore litres has been procured in tenders floated previously. Moily directed fuel retailers to expedite delivery of already procured ethanol and buy additional quantity through fresh tenders to meet 5 per cent mandatory requirement under Ethanol-Blended Programme (EBP). At a meeting of chairmen and directors in-charge of marketing at the three fuel retailers and Indian Sugar Manufacturers Association (ISMA), Moily directed the firms "to make all efforts for expediting delivery of already procured quantity of ethanol," an official statement said. He also asked them to expeditiously procure additional quantity of ethanol through fresh tenders to meet the EBP requirement. The Minister had called the meeting to expedite procurement the delivery of ethanol for the EBP programme as per CCEA decision taken in a meeting held on November 22, 2012, it said. "The Minister observed that against a requirement of 100 crore litre ethanol per year, the oil marketing companies have so far finalised procurement of around 40 crore litres of ethanol for next twelve months," the statement said. "To meet the balance requirement, OMCs are planning to float another tender in the month of July 2013 for procurement of ethanol," it added.