India's Energy Transition Towards Methanol and Ethanol Economy in Pursuit of Carbon Neutrality

Abstract

In 2021, India committed to achieving Net Zero emissions by 2070. India announced this commitment at COP26. The Indian government is committed to focusing on transport, buildings, urban and power sectors to achieve Net Zero by lowering greenhouse gas emissions. India has already started investing in the "Ethanol Economy" by replacing a significant fraction of transport gasoline with ethanol. India has progressively increased ethanol use by enhancing ethanol production capacity. National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Ayog), a think tank of the government of India, has envisioned a "Methanol Economy" to support energy transition activities. Technology demonstrations for methanol production and vehicle field trials have been undertaken. This paper aims to summarise the role of the "Methanol Economy" and "Ethanol Economy" in India's quest for energy transition to achieve net zero. India's energy security and the approaches followed by other countries to achieving net zero are summarised as well. Various aspects of the "Methanol and Ethanol Economy", such as production capacity, emissions, and role for greenhouse gas emissions reductions, are discussed. Various steps taken by the government of India are summarised, which include setting up standards for the adaptation of methanol/ethanol, setting up production infrastructure, and technology development for end-user applications, etc.