The Uttar Pradesh government is negotiating with Denmark for technological know-how for eco-friendly production of ethanol in the state. The country is expected to aid the state in adopting a new technology for making ethanol and methanol through the utilisation of agricultural waste.

Recently, Ambassador of Denmark Freddie Svane met Chief Secretary DS Mishra and discussed the utility of the technology related to the conversion of stubble straw into bio straw briquettes into ethanol or methanol in depth, officials here on Thursday said.

The ambassador informed that bio methanol and e-methanol are being produced from agricultural waste, wheat, and paddy straws. The state government is keen on adopting a similar technology and there is a possibility that after setting up the first plant in Denmark, the Uttar Pradesh government may take steps in this direction by partnering with Denmark.

E-methanol is produced through the hydrogen gas in the carbon dioxide produced by the fermentation process. Denmark is setting up the first project based on this patented technology. It is proposed to start production in the year 2025.

The proposed Danish patented technology is not operational anywhere in the world. The first plant based on this method is under construction and is expected to start production by 2025. It is proposed to produce 1.00 lakh tonnes of ethanol from 145 million normal cubic meters of biogas (1,10,200 tonnes of gas) collected from 6 briquette production plants of 450 tonnes capacity each.

The CAPEX for setting up of this plant has been shown as Rs 2,225 crore. It is proposed to produce 2.50 lakh tonnes of methanol from 145 million normal cubic meters of biogas gathered from 6 briquette production plants of 450 tonnes capacity each. The CAPEX for setting up this plant has been shown as Rs 3034 crore. The prices of ethanol and methanol produced are about Rs. 80.00 and Rs. 64.00 per litre respectively.

Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) is setting up a 2G ethanol plant on 50 acres of land in Gorakhpur. An investment of about Rs 800 crore is proposed. The plant will use cellulose as a raw material, which includes sugarcane byproducts, agricultural residues, vegetable oils and sugar. The proposal to make Bio-CNG from wet waste is also under consideration by the urban bodies in major cities of the state.