India announces launch of Global Biofuels Alliance on sidelines of G20 Summit

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the launch of India-led Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA) on Saturday on the sidelines of the G20 Summit. GBA is an India-led initiative to develop an alliance of governments, international organisations and industry to facilitate the adoption of biofuels. So far, 19 countries and 12 international organisations have agreed to the join the alliance. The list of 19 countries includes seven G20 nations, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India, Italy, South Africa and the US. The other countries who will members of the alliance include Bangladesh, Singapore, Mauritius, UAE, Iceland, Kenya, Guyana, Paraguay, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Uganda and Finland.

International organisations who will be part of the GBA include the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, World Economic Forum (WEF), World LPG Organisation, UN Energy for All, UNIDO, Biofutures Platform, International Civil Aviation Organisation, International Energy Agency (IEA), International Energy Forum, International Renewable Energy Agency and World Biogas Association.

Global Biofuel Alliance members contribute 85% to ethanol production

GBA Members constitute major producers and consumers of biofuels — USA (52 percent), Brazil (30 percent) and India (3 percent) — who contribute about 85 percent share in production and about 81 percent in consumption of ethanol. “The global energy sector has witnessed a historic moment today with the announcement of the Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA) by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit,” the government said in a statement.

‘GBA will strengthen India’s position globally’

“Bringing together the biggest consumers and producers of biofuels to drive biofuel development and deployment, the initiative aims to position biofuels as a key to energy transition and contribute to jobs and economic growth. The announcement of the GBA showcases the action-oriented nature of India’s positive agenda as G20 President and representing the ‘Voice of the Global South,’” said the government.

“The initiative will be beneficial for India on multiple fronts. GBA as a tangible outcome of the G20 presidency, will help strengthen India’s position globally,” the statement added.

What will Global Biofuel Alliance do?

GBA will support the worldwide development and deployment of sustainable biofuels by offering capacity-building exercises across the value chain, technical support for national programmes and promoting policy lessons-sharing. It will facilitate mobilising a virtual marketplace to assist industries, countries, ecosystem players and key stakeholders in mapping demand and supply, as well as connecting technology providers to end users. It will also facilitate the development, adoption and implementation of internationally-recognised standards, codes, sustainability principles and regulations to incentivise biofuels adoption and trade.

Moreover, the alliance will focus on collaboration and will provide additional opportunities to Indian industries in the form of exporting technology and exporting equipment. It will help accelerate India’s existing biofuels programmes such as PM-JIVANYojna, SATAT, and GOBARdhan scheme, thereby contributing to increased farmers’ income, creating jobs and leading to the overall development of the Indian ecosystem. The global ethanol market was valued at USD 99.06 billion in 2022 and is predicted to grow at a CAGR of 5.1 percent by 2032 and surpass USD 162.12 billion by 2032. As per IEA, there will be 3.5-5x biofuels growth potential by 2050 due to Net Zero targets, creating a huge opportunity for India.

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