Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari said on Monday (September 9) that the government has made much progress in terms of devising a policy on mixing ethanol in petroleum products.
 
Bhandari made the remark while addressing the programme titled 'Extensive Debate on Mixing Ethanol in Petroleum Products' organised by Nepal Association of Financial Journalists (NAFIJ) in Kathmandu.

According to the minister, the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has been given directives after making necessary policy-related arrangements to reduce the consumption of 200,000 kilolitres of petroleum products daily through the production of ethanol. 

NOC has expressed its commitment to produce and mix ethanol, saying it was feasible.

"The Regulations Related to Mixing Ethanol in Petroleum Products has already been developed,” Bhandari said. “The price remains to be fixed; we will sort it out within a month."

Besides bringing down the consumption of petroleum products, ethanol production is expected to create jobs.

The discussion was organised in the context of mixing 10% ethanol in petroleum products which is being talked of late. 

Although a policy related to it was formulated more than two decades ago, it is yet to be implemented.
 
Reuters reported last week that a push by India to increase the production of corn-based ethanol has turned Asia's top corn exporter into a net importer for the first time in decades, affecting local poultry producers and disrupting global supply chains.

(With inputs from RSS)